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An/ials  of 
Richfield. 


+  BY  + 
DR.  HENRY  f\.  WARD. 


PRESS   OP 

FIERSTINE  PRINTING  HOUSE,  UTICA,  N    T. 

1898. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress, 
in  the  year  1898, 

By  Henby  a.  Ward, 

in  the  oflace  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress, 
at  Washington. 


fN  response  to  urgent  requests  of  many  residents  and 
visitors,  this  volume  has  been  compiled ;  and  the 
aim  of  the  writer  has  been  to  present  to  the  public,  an 
annals  as  full  and  complete  as  possible.  No  attempt, 
however,  has  been  put  forth  to  make  it  a  book  of  biog- 
raphies ;  neither  will  there  be  found  evidence  of  any- 
studied  effort  at  rhetorical  flourish  or  period.  But 
it  is  confidently  hoped  that  the  reader  will  find  in 
these  pages  what  the  writer  tried  to  place  there — a 
plain,  straightforward  history  of  Richfield. 

HENRY  A.  WARD. 

Richfield  Springs, 

July,  1898. 


iw294174 


PAGES 

Adventure  and  Scouting  in  Exeter, 22,  55 

Affidavit  of  George  Knouts,     .    .        16 

Andrustown,      82,  84 

Anecdotes,      72,  81 

Anti-Masonry, 50 

Apartments, 77 

Attempt  to  raise  Volunteers,  1812, ,    .    .    37 

Balls,  early 39 

Bathing-houses,      55 

Brant, 14,  16,  24,  54,  83,  84,  85 

Brass  Bands, 78 

Brick-yards,    first 59 

British  Nation,       13 

Brighton, 33 

Burying  grounds, 38 

Business  organizations, 67 

Butternut  Road, 22 

Campaigns,  political, 50 

Canadarago  Belt, 98 

Canadarago  Race-course, 55 

Changes,  county  and  town,       10 

Churches, 93 

Cottages,      77 

Courtney-Lee  sculling  race,      68 

Curfew  bell, 68 

Customs,  early,      19 


INDEX.  6 

Dam  and  mills,  first, 18 

'  De-o-won-go, 98,  101 

Distilleries  and  drinks, 44 

Druse  murder, 86 

Election,  first, 27 

Electric  lights, 65 

Exeter, 11,  21 

Events,  early, 19 

Fatalities, 89 

Federal  Corners, 22 

Fire  Department, 59 

Frenchmen  at  Canadarago  Lake, 9 

Game  and  fish, 40 

General  trainings, .    .    .  36 

Gunset  Hill, 100 

Habitations,  early, 24 

Hatred  for  England,      15 

Hewes,  G.  R.  T., 87 

Hops, 68 

Hotels, 69 

Incorporation  of  Richfield  Springs, 57 

Indian  fight, 54 

Indian  mound, 68 

Indian  names, 74 

Indians, 52 

Indian  trail, 54 

Land  patents, 9 

Libraries, 37 

Little  Lakes, 84 


6  INDEX. 

Mills,  first, 18 

Mohegan  Hill, 102 

Monticello, 33,  81 

Monument,  Soldiers'  and  Sailors', 73 

Names,  early, 25 

Nine  Hill, 99 

Oaks  Creek  dam, 43 

Old  England  District 11 

Panther  Mountain, 102 

Paupers,  care  of, 40 

Petrified  bodies, 89 

Plainfield, 11,  21 

Points  of  Historical  Interest, 86 

Population, 36 

Post-offices, 33 

Pranks, 72 

Pray  Hill, 99 

Prize  farm, 51 

Professional  and  business  people, 78 

Publications, 63 

Railroad, 63 

Republican  State  Convention, 68 

Richfield  people  in  office, 35 

Richfield  Springs,      56 

Roller  skating, 69 

Schools, 29 

Scouts, 22,  54 

Sculling  regatta, 69 

Seminary, 32 


<( 


INDEX.  7 

Settlement  of  Richfield,  proper, 17 

Settlers  after  the  Revolution, 17 

Settlers,  earliest, 12 

Sewers, 69 

Shooting  of  Hall  and  Lajrton, 93 

Sidewalk,  first, 62 

Societies  and  organizations,      66 

Soldiers  of  the  Revolution,      87 

"      war  of  1812, 87 

"      Mexican  war, 87 

Rebellion, 48 

war  with  Spain, 87 

Springfield, 85 

Springs, 88 

Store,  first,      19 

Summer  homes, 75 

Summer  theatre, 78 

Sunken  Island, 42 

Sunset  Hill, 100 

Sulphur  Spring, 59 

Supervisors,  full  list  of, ".  28 

Taverns,  first, 19 

Telegraph  and  telephone, 63 

Town  meeting,  first, 25 

Waiontha  mountain, 101 

Waiontha  observatory, 68 

Warren, 84 

War-times,  1861-5, 45 

Waterworks, 68 

Weather,  unusual, 41 


8  ERR  A  TA—A  BDEND  UM. 

White  people,  first, 9 

Wilde,  Oscar, 68 

Woodside  Park, 64 


KRRATTA. 

For  "Jeff  Da  vies,"  p.  47,  read  Jeff  Davis. 

For  "occassion,"  p.  53,  read  occasion. 

On  page  87,  fourth  paragraph,  second  name  should  be  Thomas 
M.  King. 


The  region  about  Richfield  Springs  was  called  Ga-no-wan-ges  by 
the  Oneidas,    The  phrase  meant  Stinking  Water. 


FIRST  WHITE  PEOPLE. 

For  many  years  before  the  French  and  Indian  war, 
although  New  York  was  a  British  province,  that  part 
of  the  State  where  peltry  was  abundant,  was  much  fre- 
quented by  French  traders  and  trappers,  whose  head- 
quarters were  Crown  Point,  Frontenac  and  Niagara. 
Many  of  these  Frenchmen  married  squaws,  Indian 
fashion,  and  lived  with  them  in  the  beautiful  lake 
region  of  the  young  Empire  State.  A  little  settlement 
of  these  was  located  at  the  site  of  the  Lake  House,  on 
both  sides  of  the  brook  which  seeks  the  lake  at  that 
point,  and  was  doubtless  the  home  of  the  first  white 
settlers  in  this  vicinity.  One  of  these  Frenchmen  and 
his  dusky  mate,  remained  as  late  as  1805  or  '6,  but  the 
others  left,  subsequent  to  the  time  of  the  survey  of  the 
three  land  patents  embracing  the  shores  of  ''  Cania- 
deraga  "  Lake,  that  were  granted  by  King  George  II., 
through  agents  at  Albany. 

PATENTS. 
The  records  at  the  capital  show  that  David  Schuyler 
and  21  others  obtained,  June  3,  1755,  a  patent  to 
43,000  acres  bordering  on  the  lake  on  the  northern 
half  of  the  west  side,  extending  around  the  head  of  the 
lake,  and  down  the  east  side  about  one-half  mile. 
From  this  line  to  a  point  opposite  the  island  were  the 
lands  of  John  McNeile,  whose  grant  of  5,928  acres  was 


10  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

dated  April  5,  1769.  The  rest  of  the  lake  was  border- 
ed by  the  lands  of  the  Otsego  Patent,  granted  Nov.  30, 
1769,  conveying  to  George  Croghan  and  99  others, 
100,000  acres. 

Coenraedt  Mattys,  one  of  the  patentees  of  the  Schuyler 
purchase,  took  for  his  share,  lot  85,  which  in  our  day, 
is  the  site  of  the  chief  portion  of  Richfield  Springs, 
and  contained  about  1,000  acres.  It  was  necessary  to 
name  something  as  a  consideration  for  the  transfer  of 
real  estate  ;  and  in  getting  a  title  to  his  share  of  the 
Schuyler  Patent,  Mattys  named  "  one  barley  corn  " 
as  the  consideration,  but  not  to  indicate  the  price  or 
value  of  the  land. 

West  of  the  Schuyler  Patent,  was  a  grant  of  9,200 
acres,  given  Sept.  6,  1770,  to  Leonard  Lispenard,  Mar- 
tin Shier  and  others.  Shier  was  great-uncle  to  Mrs. 
A.  C.  Van  de  Water,  of  Church  street.  This  grant 
was  in  Richfield  as  originally  constituted,  but  was  set 
off,  in  1799,  as  Plainfield.  George  Robson,  father  of 
Mrs.  Van  de  Water,  and  grandfather  of  Mrs.  T.  J. 
Crombie,  afterward  bought  Shier's  share.  A  map 
made  in  London,  in  1779,  by  Claude  Joseph  Sauthier, 
by  order  of  Major  General  William  Try  on,  the  last 
British  Governor  of  New  York,  shows  the  locations 
and  limits  of  these  patents. 

COUNTY  AND  TOWN  CHANGES. 

This  part  of  New  York  was  included  in  the  county 
of  Albany,  formed  Nov.  1,  1683.    Tryon  county,  named 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  11 

for  William  Try  on,  colonial  Governor,  was  taken  off 
from  Albany,  March  12,  1772.  Afterward,  it  was 
called  ''  Old  England  District,"  because  nearly  all  its 
inhabitants  were  of  English  origin,  while  the  Mohawk 
valley  portion  was  occupied  by  people  who  spoke  a 
German  dialect.  At  a  Court  of  Special  Sessions  held 
in  Johnstown,  the  county  seat,  Oct.  31,  1786,  Hugh 
Johnson,  Matthew  Cully,  Joseph  Tunnicliff,  Samuel 
Tubbs,  and  Joseph  Mayall,  were  appointed  highway 
commissioners  of  Old  England  district.  The  State  tax 
of  the  district  was  twenty-five  pounds  in  1787,  and 
seven  pounds  in  1788.  After  the  Revolution,  the 
name,  Tryon,  was  not  agreeable  to  its  inhabitants ;  so, 
on  April  2,  1784,  it  was  changed  to  Montgomery,  in 
honor  of  General  Richard  Montgomery.  Rich- 
field was  in  German  Flatts,  as  the  towns 
were  set  off,  March  7,  1788.  Otsego  county 
was  erected  from  Montgomery,  February  16,  1791,  and 
was  originally  divided  into  the  towns  of  Otsego  and 
Cherry  Valley.  The  town  of  Richfield  was  formed 
from  Otsego,  April  10,  1792  ;  and  as  then  set  off,  in- 
cluded Exeter  and  Plainfield,  which,  on  March  25, 
1799,  became  separate  towns.  Still  later,  April 
17,  1816,  another  portion  of  Richfield  was 
taken  away,  when  Winfield,  Herkimer  county, 
was  erected.  The  following  is  relevant :  **  At 
a  Special  Town  Meeting  held  at  the  House 
of  John  Rudd,  Innholder,  in  the  Town  of  Richfield, 
on  Tuesday,  the  18th  day  of  December,  1798,  for  the 


12  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD, 

purpose  of  *  *  *  *  and  Likewise  to  Divide  Sd. 
Town — Voted  that  the  Town  be  Divided  into  three 
Towns,  and  that  Obed  Edson,  Jr.,  Vose  Palmer,  and 
Caleb  Clark  Be  the  Committee  to  report  a  plan  of 
Division." 

"  At  a  Special  townmeeting  held  Feb.  22,  1812,  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  into  consideration  the  propriety 
or  impropriety  of  dividing  the  Town,  a  vote  was  taken 
upon  the  division  of  Said  Town  by  passing  round, 
upon  which  it  appeared  that  51  were  in  favor  of  hav- 
ing the  town  Divided  &  one  hundred  &  ten  against  a 
Division." 

At  a  town  meeting  held  March  5,  1816,  this  record 
was  made  :  "A  notice  being  Read  at  the  Opening  of 
the  Meeting,  of  an  Intended  Application  to  the  Legis- 
lature at  their  present  Session  for  a  Division  of  the 
Town  by  taking  off  two  tier  of  Lots  on  the  west  end 
of  Said  Town  for  the  purpose  of  Erecting  a  Town  with 
a  part  of  Litchfield  and  plainfield on  Motion  be- 
ing made  and  Seconded Voted  that  no  Division  be 

made  in  Said  Town — by  a  large  majority." 

EARLIEST  SETTLERS. 

About  the  year  1755,  Hendrick  Herkimer  settled 
upon  Herkimer  creek  near  Schuyler  Lake  village.  In 
1756  came  John  Tunnicliff,  from  England.  He 
bought  12,000  acres  lying  both  sides  of  Oaks  Creek, 
and  built  a  cabin  on  Pleasant  Brook,  about  two  miles 
south  of  Schuyler  Lake.      As  far  as  can  be  learned, 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  IS 

these  were  the  first  to  build  permanent  homes  in  this 
vicinity.  At  this  time  the  French  and  Indian  war  was 
in  progress,  and  Mr.  Tunnicliff,  knowing  the  dangers 
of  a  frontier,  to  which  he  might  be  exposed,  prudently- 
left  and  returned  to  England.  It  is  not  known  whether 
Herkimer  left  or  remained.  In  1765,  Tunnicliff  re- 
turned to  his  wilderness  home.  It  is  related  that  when 
he  left  his  pioneer  cabin  he  buried  a  quantity  of  tools 
of  all  kinds ;  and  2,000  English  sovereigns  in  a  keg 
were  also  concealed  in  the  same  way.  Upon  his  return 
he  found  his  buildings  destroyed,  and  the  scene  so 
changed  that  he  could  not  locate  the  places  where  he 
had  buried  the  tools  and  treasure.  Years  afterward, 
John  W.  Tunnicliff  found  the  rusted  remnants  of  the 
tools  while  digging  bait  beside  the  stream.  The  money 
still  awaits  its  fortunate  finder.  In  1774,  the  Schuy- 
lers  came  and  took  up  land  on  Herkimer  creek,  and 
built  log  houses. 

While  the  American  Revolution  was  progressing, 
and  the  Iroquois  had  been  enlisted  by  British  author- 
ity, in  a  barbarous  and  cowardly  warfare  upon  the 
defenseless  frontiers,  all  settlers  except  Tories,  that  re- 
mained by  their  firesides,  were  exposed  to  those  scenes 
and  experiences  of  brutal  violence  and  disgraceful 
cruelty,  which  will  ever  be  stains  upon  England's 
escutcheon,  and  a  shame  to  the  British  nation. 

But  what  is  that  British  nation  ?  It  is  that  venom- 
ous vampire,  whose  filthy  veins  were  filled  during  the 
struggle  for  American  Independence,  with  the  blood  of 


U  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

weak,  defenceless  women  and  innocent  babes ;  the  life 
of  any  one  of  whom  was  of  more  value  than  a  million 
of  such  carrion  as  sat  in  the  chair  of  George  the  Third. 

It  is  that  human  beast  which  gleefully  desolated  the 
happy  homes  of  thousands  of  American  non-combat- 
ants, and  glutted  its  charnel  appetite  with  rapine  and 
murder ;  which  paid  its  savage  Brants,  and  worse  than 
savage  Butlers,  for  long-tressed  scalps  of  women,  and 
wee  downy  ones  torn  from  the  heads  of  sucklings. 
These  scalps  were  stretched  and  dried  upon  small 
hoops ;  and  tears  were  painted  upon  the  tiny  ones,  to 
betoken  the  anguish  of  agonized  mothers,  and  to  satisfy 
more  fully  the  atrocious  flint-heartedness  of  the  En- 
glish ministry. 

It  is  that  skilled  diplomacy  of  Downing  street, 
which  smirks  in  the  face  of  Brother  Jonathan  and 
holds  out  to  him  the  poisoned  glove. 

It  is  that  arrant  coward,  which  has  not  faced  single- 
handed,  in  nearly  a  century  of  constant  quarreling, 
any  except  the  weakest  peoples  of  the  earth ;  that 
blustering  bully,  which,  too  craven  to  meet  a  power 
anywhere  nearly  its  equal,  picks  quarrels  in  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  with  naked  tribes,  and  mistreats 
them  to  death. 

It  is  that  great  robber  that  exacts  tribute  from  feeble 
populations  to  pension  its  regal  spawn. 

It  is  that  United  Kingdom  which  recently  expended 
a  hundred  million  dollars  upon  a  queen  and  empress' 
raree-show,    while   millions   of  Hindoos   in   England- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  15 

ridden  India  were  starving  to  death  ;  and  England,  in 
selfishness  and  greed,  witnessed  the  silly  pageant,  paid 
for  by  the  blood-stained  rupees  of  a  noble,  tho'  wasted 
race. 

It  is  that  monarchy,  whose  brutality  and  furious 
hatred  furnished  the  gentleman,  the  lord,  that  rained 
blows  upon  the  tender  body  of  Joan  of  Arc,  because 
he  failed  in  the  shameful  task  to  which  he  had  been 
set,  namely :  to  sully  first,  what  British  cruelty  after- 
ward burned  at  the  stake,  in  Rouen's  market-place. 

Every  American  child  should  nurse  hatred  of  Eng- 
land from  its  mother's  breast.  Hatred  of  England 
ought  to  be  taught  as  a  part  of  the  curriculum  of  every 
American  school.  The  first  declamation  of  every 
American  pupil  should  begin  with  ''  I  hate  England." 
Every  American  college  and  university  should  be  en- 
dowed by  the  United  States  government  with  a  prize- 
fund  for  the  best  yearly  essay  and  oration  upon  the 
theme  :  Why  Americans  ought  to  hate  England.  Any 
student  of  unemasculated  American  history  can  find  a 
thousand  good  reasons  for  enmity  to  this  assassin  of 
nations.  It  is  the  patriotic  duty  of  every  American 
parent  to  consecrate  his  children  to  unequivocal  dis- 
trust and  hatred  of  England,  even  as  the  Carthaginian, 
Hamilcar  Barca,  swore  his  sons,  Hannibal  and  Has- 
drubal,  at  the  sword's  point,  to  eternal  enmity  to 
Rome. 

But  this  is  a  digression. 

Schuyler,   by   claiming    strict    neutrality,    escaped 


16  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

harm,  but  the  Herkimers  sided  with  the  colonies,  and 
had  to  flee  to  the  forts  on  the  Mohawk.  Tunnicliff, 
being  an  Englishman  in  full  sympathy  with  the 
crown,  was  unmolested  by  the  roving  bands  of  Indians 
under  the  leadership  of  Brant.  Indeed,  their  relations 
were  entirely  amicable,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  follow- 
ing, excerpted  from  Jeptha  R.  Simms'  Frontiersmen, 

''  Palatine,  March  28,  1778. 

"  George  Knouts  declareth  upon  oath  that  he  was  a 
prisoner  with  [of]  Brant  last  summer,  at  old  Mr.  Tun- 
nicliff's  ;  that  the  said  Tunnicliff  supplied  all  Brant's 
party  with  provisions  freely,  and  that  Brant  made  a 
bargain  with  Tunnicliff  for  three  oxen  for  thirty-six 
pounds  ;  and  gave  said  Tunnicliff  a  writing  under  his 
hand  for  them ;  and  that  a  servant-lad  of  Tunnicliff 
told  said  Knouts  that  his  master  had  let  Brant  have 
500  weight  of  cheese  and  10  or  12  cows  but  a  little  be- 
fore that  time,  and  that  the  said  Tunnicliff's  son  was 
at  his  liberty  when  he  saw  him  there  and  wore  the 
same  token  on  his  hat  that  Brant's  own  men  wore ; 
which  was  a  piece  of  yellow  lace,  and  farther  saith  not. 

His 

George   X   Knouts. 

mark 

Sworn  before  me  the  day  \ 
above  mentioned.        J 

Peter  S.  Dygert, 

Justice.^'' 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  17 

SETTLEMENT  OF  RICHFIELD   PROPER. 

Coenraedt  Mattys,  in  1771,  sold  400  acres  of  his 
1,000  to  Franz  Freba  and  Theobold  Zimmerman,  in 
lots  6,  7,  8,  and  9,  of  his  great  lot,  No.  85.  Most  of 
this  village  east  of  Center  street  is  upon  lot  No.  6. 
Freba  built  a  log  cabin  on  the  east  side  of  Canadarago 
hill,  north  of  the  road  that  afterward  led  from  Federal 
Corners.  This  was  the  first  house  in  the  village,  and 
probably  the  first  in  the  town,  as  now  limited.  In 
1774,  William  Tunnicliff"  bought  600  acres  in  the 
north  part  of  Schuyler's  patent,  the  east  line  running 
northerly  from  the  mouth  of  the  Ocquionis,  to  the 
town  line,  crossing  Main  street  a  little  to  the  west  of 
the  National.  He  did  not  occupy  the  land  till  15 
years  later.  In  the  town  as  it  now  is,  the  settlers  that 
swarmed  in  soon  after  the  Revolution,  found,  here  and 
there,  evidences  of  occupation  by  white  people  prior  to 
that  event ;  but  whether  they  suffered  from  the  brand 
and  tomahawk  of  that  period,  or  sought  safety  in 
flight,  is  not  known.  Seth  Allen,  Richard  and  William 
Pray,  John  Beardsley,  Joseph  Coats,  and  John  Kim- 
ball, settled  in  the  neighborhood  of  Monticello  and 
Brighton  in  1787.  In  1789,  Daniel  Hawks,  John 
Hatch,  Ebenezer  Eaton,  and  Joseph  Rockwell,  took 
up  lands  at,  and  a  little  to  the  west  of  this  village. 
The  following  year,  Obadiah  Beardsley  and  family 
settled  near  Monticello  ;  the  Colwells  and  others  came 
soon   afterward.       In    1791,    John   Gano   and   James 


18  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

"Williamson  bought  a  tract  of  land  west  of  this  village, 
bordering  on  Otskonoga  creek.  In  another  place  may 
be  found  names  of  people  in  town  in  1793.  John 
Derthick  came  at  this  date  and  settled  on  the  old  road, 
then  called  the  Butternut  Road,  that  led  to  the  lake. 
Freedom  Chamberlin  came  two  years  later  and  located 
near  Derthick.  The  same  year  Joseph  Layton  bought 
what  is  now  the  Egypt  farm,  on  the  northwest  shore  of 
the  lake.  In  1802,  Nathan  Dow,  grandfather  of  Mrs. 
Mary  Blue,  of  Church  street,  bought  of  Freba,  lands 
upon  which  much  of  this  village  stands. 

In  1791,  William  TunniclifF  built  a  sawmill  on  the 
North  side  of  Main  street  near  where  it  crosses  the 
Ocquionis.  A  grist-mill  was  erected  the  next  year, 
where  the  electric  light  plant  is,  and  later,  near  by,  a 
clover-mill.  The  builder  of  dam  and  mills  was  Judge 
Jedediah  Peck,  of  whom  it  was  said  that  ''  he  would 
survey  your  farm  in  the  forenoon,  preach  a  funeral 
sermon  in  the  afternoon,  hold  regular  services  on  Sun- 
day, and  talk  politics  all  the  week."  A  section  of  this 
dam  was  dug  away,  and  the  pond  discontinued  in 
1886  ;  but  portions  of  it  are  still  in  place.  Up  to  this 
time  the  inhabitants  were  obliged  to  go  with  their 
wheat  and  corn  to  Samuel  Tubbs'  at  Toddsville,  Wal- 
bridge  brothers'  at  Burlington  Flats,  or  Isaac  Country- 
man's at  Fort  Plain.  At  this  date,  and  later,  every 
family  had  its  samp-mortar  for  the  crushing  of  Indian 
corn,  at  which  the  children  were  often  set  to  work. 

Soon  after  the  erection   of  the  Tunnicliff  mills,  Cy- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  19 

rus  Robinson  built  a  store  on  the  site  of  St.  John*s 
church.  Here  in  the  manner  of  the  times,  business 
was  conducted  thirty  years. 

FIRST    TAVERNS. 

Obed  Edson  and  John  Rudd  kept  the  first  taverns 
in  log  buildings,  several  years  before  the  erection  of 
Jacob  Brewster's,  in  Monticello,  in  1797.  Edson's  was 
near  Monticello ;  Rudd's  was  farther  south,  probably 
in  the  present  Exeter.  Soon  after  building  his  mills, 
Mr.  Tunnicliff  built  a  house  where  the  Dana  house 
stands,  next  to  the  electric  light  plant;  and  subse- 
quently put  up  a  public  house  on  the  top  of  the  hill 
on  Herkimer  street,  where  Sylvester  McRorie's  house 
is.  It  was  first  kept  by  Israel  Rawson,  and  was  known 
for  years  as  Tunnicliff  Abbey. 

EARLY  CUSTOMS  AND  EVENTS. 

In  the  early  days,  nearly  every  family  made  its  own 
cloth  from  wool  and  flax  ;  and  grain-bags  and  coarse 
garments  from  nettles.  Each  family  had  a  large  wheel, 
and  a  little  one  ;  the  first  for  wool  and  the  other  for 
flax.  Many  families  had  looms  on  which  they  made 
their  own  cloth,  and  at  times  rented  their  use  to  neigh- 
bors. At  flrst,  the  picking  and  carding  of  the  wool  had 
to  be  done  by  hand  ;  but  afterward  there  were  several 
carding  and  fulling-mills  hereabout,  the  locations  of 
which  can  still  be  seen  on  several  small  streams.  Trav- 
eling shoemakers  would  stay  at  a  house  till  all  the 


20  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

members  of  the  family  were  provided  with  boots  or 
shoes ;  then  move  on  to  the  next  house  needing  their 
services.  These  itinerants  were  known  as  "  cat-whip- 
pers."  The  cattle  ran  in  the  woods  and  often  ate 
leeks,  which  would  give  the  milk  and  butter  a  decided 
alliaceous  odor  and  taste.  To  overcome  the  objection- 
able taste  in  them,  people  would  eat  a  piece  of  leek. 
During  these  early  times  the  settlers  had  very  little 
tea  or  sugar,  and  no  cofiPee.  Various  substitutes  were 
used  for  tea.  The  inner  part  of  white  pine  bark,  and 
sassafras  root  were  steeped,  and  the  infusion  was  drunk. 
Evin  root,  a  low  shrub  with  hemlock-like  foliage,  and 
bearing  translucent  red  berries,  was  most  commonly 
used.  Flour  was  sometimes  browned  in  a  kettle  with 
maple  sugar,  and  the  resulting  caramel  made  the  base 
of  a  hot  table  drink.  Once  in  a  great  while  someone 
would  have  a  half-pound  of  tea.  Its  lucky  female 
possessor  would  then  invite  iall  the  ''womenfolks"  to 
come  and  ''taste  tea."  In  summer  they  usually  came 
barefoot,  carrying  their  high-heeled  shoes  in  their 
hands,  till  near  the  house  of  tea-drinking,  just  as  they 
did  on  Sundays,  when  going  to  "  meeting."  Later  the 
use  of  tea  became  more  general ;  but  it  was  many 
years  before  coffee  was  much  used.  Even  as  late  as 
1835,  when  the  late  0.  N.  Shipman  conducted  an  iron 
business  in  Springfield  Center,  it  was  a  subject  of  mar- 
veling conversation  throughout  this  region,  that  he 
gave  his  men  coffee  at  breakfast  every  morning. 

The  first  birth  was  that  of  Joseph  Beardsley,  son  of 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  21 

Obadiah  and  Eunice  Moore  Beardsley,  May  26,  1792. 
The  first  marriage  was  that  of  Ebenezer  Russell  and 
Miss  Moore,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Eunice  Beardsley,  and  oc- 
curred in  1793  or  '4.  Judge  William  Cooper,  of  Coop- 
erstown,  came  on  horseback  to  perform  the  ceremony. 
It  was  an  event  of  much  importance,  and  preparations 
for  it  as  such  were  made.  A  great  pile  of  doughnuts, 
"nut-cakes"  of  those  days,  was  heaped  in  a  wooden 
bowl  and  placed  upon  a  pine  table  in  the  largest  room 
in  the  log  house.  The  neighbors  were  present  in  their 
best  *'  gear."  The  magistrate  united  the  couple,  and 
gave  the  bride  a  sounding  smack  immediately  after- 
ward. The  health  of  bride  and  groom  was  drunk  in 
rum,  and  the  judge  departed.  The  young  bride  lived 
about  a  year ;  and  hers  was  the  first  funeral,  tho'  a 
man  had  been  killed  before,  by  a  falling  tree.  There 
was  no  nearby  clergyman  to  conduct  the  services,  so  a 
layman,  Timothy  Hatch,  read  a  chapter  from  the 
Bible,  at  the  house,  and  a  hymn  at  the  grave. 

EXETER  AND  PLAINFIELD. 

In  1789  and  1790,  William  Angell  settled  in 
Exeter,  at  Angell  Hill,  and  Asahel  Williams 
and  Hagur  Curtis  in  the  south  part  of  the 
town ;  Seth  Tubbs  and  Bethel  Martin  at  West 
Exeter,  and  Thomas  Brooks  and  Minerva  Cush- 
man  on  the  banks  of  the  Rockdunga.  John  Tun- 
niclifF  kept  the  first  store  and  tavern  soon  after  the 
Revolution  ;  John  Hartshorne  built  the  first  grist-mill. 


22  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

upon  Herkimer  creek.  It  was  in  this  town  that  Brant 
purchased  many  supplies  for  his  band,  and  where  he, 
with  numbers  of  followers,  often  camped.  Here  Abra- 
ham Herkimer  was  sent  as  a  scout  from  Fort  Herkimer, 
to  watch  the  movements  of  the  Indians.  Here,  too, 
Smith  the  scout  was  sent  from  the  same  place,  and 
here  he  shot  an  Indian  to  save  his  own  life.  In  that 
part  of  Richfield  that  is  now  Plainfield,  there  were  no 
white  people  before  the  Revolution,  except  surveyors 
and  trappers.  In  1793,  Ruggles  Spooner,  Elias 
Wright  and  John  Kilbourne  commenced  a  settlement 
at  Plainfield  Centre.  Samuel  Williams,  Benjamin  and 
Abel  Clark,  located  on  the  Unadilla  about  the  same 
time.  The  first  school  was  taught  by  James  Robinson 
in  1797.  William  Lincoln  kept  the  first  inn  at  Lloyd- 
ville ;  and  Luce  &  Woodward,  the  first  store.  Caleb 
Brown  built  the  first  mill,  in  1805,  on  the  Unadilla. 

FEDERAL  CORNERS. 

Before  the  opening  of  the  third  Great  Western  turn- 
pike, from  Cherry  Valley  to  Brighton,  in  1808,  the 
road  turned  to  the  south  about  a  mile  east  of  this  vil- 
lage, and  ran  down  the  east  side  of  the  lake.  Its  name, 
a  century  ago,  was  the  Butternut  Road.  The  lands  of 
W.  D.  Wood,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Crouse,  Mrs.  Mary  But- 
ler, 0.  A.  Chamberlin,  and  John  Derthick,  border  this 
ancient  way.  A  road  leading  from  German  Flatts  via 
Andrustown,  Paige's  Corners,  and  Freeman's  Mills,  at 
this  period,  ran  over  the  top  of  Sunset  Hill,  crossed  the 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  SS 

lowland  south  of  Clayton  Lodge,  and  the  turnpike, 
nearly  opposite  Mrs.  Ezra  Conklin's  house,  and  con- 
tinued south  as  far  as  the  north  line  of  Lake  View 
cemetery,  where  it  met  at  right  angles  a  road  running 
west  from  Federal  Corners  on  the  Butternut  Road. 
This  was  a  hamlet  of  considerable  importance  before, 
and  at  this  time,  situated  an  eighth  of  a  mile  east  of 
the  cemeteries.  The  road  from  the  Corners  led  around 
the  base  of  Freba's  Hill,  later,  Benedict's,  now  Cana- 
darago  Hill,  across  the  flats  near  the  High  School,  and 
crossed  Ocquionis  Creek  where  now  stands  the  stone 
bridge  on  West  Main  street.  The  logs  that  formed  a 
bridge  east  of  Canadarago  Hill,  are  to  be  seen  to-day. 
Federal  Corners  was  a  place  of  importance.  Here 
was  a  hotel  kept  by  Mr.  Averill ;  a  store  kept  in  turn 
by  Mr.  Ballard,  Holcomb  &  Weber,  and  Edward 
Cheeseman ;  a  12-forge  blacksmith  shop  and  auger 
factory  run  by  Mr.  Vibber  ;  and  a  tannery  operated  by 
John  Williams.  Here,  too,  was  the  home  and  office 
of  Dr.  James  L.  Palmer,  a  pioneer  physician  of  the 
region,  and  a  noted  instructor  and  preceptor.  For 
many  years  his  home  was  the  school,  where  as  many 
as  a  dozen  young  men  at  a  time,  were  studying  medi- 
cine and  surgery.  When  this  village  began  to  grow, 
after  the  opening  of  the  turnpike  along  the  site  of 
Main  street,  the  fortunes  of  the  Corners  began  to  wane ; 
business  moved  to  the  younger  place,  and  now  there  is 
little  to  show  where  once  was  a  bus}  hamlet. 


24  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

EARLY  HABITATIONS. 

Here  and  there  in  the  neighborhood  are  evidences  of 
habitations  of  an  early  date.  On  the  top  of  Sunset 
Hill  are  a  well  and  the  vestiges  of  a  cellar.  They 
were  dug  by  Aaron  Abbott,  who  erected  a  log  house 
there  in  1799.  On  the  east  side  of  Canadarago  Hill 
stood  the  home  of  Franz  Freba,  at  a  spot  marked  by 
an  ancient  cellar.  A  large  house  owned  by  Hubbell 
Patchen  stood  where  is  now  the  Roman  Catholic  Cem- 
etery ;  it  was  burned  in  1836.  The  well  near  the 
house  was  covered  with  a  big  flat  stone,  and  its  loca- 
tion is  forgotten.  About  a  mile  east  of  the  village  can 
be  seen  a  cellar  near  the  old  Indian  pear  tree.  Here 
stood  the  log  house  of  Conradt  House.  From  this 
humble  cot  the  Indians  under  Joseph  Brant,  in  1777 
or  1778,  carried  away  captive,  Mary,  a  13-years  old 
daughter.  For  years  she  was  mourned  as  dead.  How- 
ever, she  appeared  in  this  region  about  the  beginning 
of  this  century,  bringing  with  her  a  daughter,  her 
child  by  her  Indian  husband.  They  staid  hereabout 
10  or  12  years,  then  disappeared,  probably  going  to 
the  Mohawks  in  Canada.  The  half-breed  daughter 
was  named  Mary  Manton. 

At  the  foot  of  the  mountain  east  of  the  Bates  farm 
house  on  the  lake  road,  and  near  the  site  of  John 
Derthick's  saw-mill,  now  gone,  lived  at  the  beginning 
of  this  century.  Rev.  Calvin  Hawley.  Later  Rufus 
Hopkins  and  the  Bohns  lived  there.  Farther  up  the 
gorge  resided  the  Jacksons. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  M 

Near  the  orchard  that  stands  at  the  foot  of  Gunset 
Hill  was  a  house  in  which  resided  the  Wheelers.  This 
was,  for  a  long  time,  the  home  of  G.  R.  T.  Hewes. 

FIRST  TOWN  MEETING  AND  EARLY  NAMES. 

*'  At  a  meting  of  the  Inhabitants  and  freeholders  ot 
the  Town  of  Richfield  Legally  Warned  and  held  at 
the  house  of  John  Rudd,  Inholder  in  Sd.  town  on 
tuesday  the  Second  day  of  April,  in  the  Year  of  our 
Lord  one  thousand  Seven  hundred  and  ninety-three, 
Mr.  James  B.  Nichols,  Moderator,  and  Mr.  William 
Tunnicliff,  Clerk  of  the  Day,  the  following  Gentlemen 
were  Voted  and  Chosen  into  Office,  viz  :  Nathan  Jef- 
fords, Supervisor ;  Seth  Allen,  Town  Clerk  ;  Alpheus 
Loomis,  Obadiah  Beardsley,  Jr.,  Wm.  Tunnicliff,  As- 
sessors ;  Benj.  Hodge,  John  Beardsley,  John  Martin, 
commissioners  of  highways ;  Joseph  Coats,  Robt.  Mar- 
tin, Jr.,  overseers  of  poor ;  James  B.  Nicholls,  James 
Farr,  Christo.  Palmer,  constables ;  James  Farr,  col- 
lector. The  above  Sd.  officers  were  sworn,  and  sub- 
scribed their  Oaths  according  to  Law  before  Peter 
Lambert,  Esq.,  a  Magistrate  who  presided  over  Sd. 
meting.  Voted  also,  John  Rudd,  Elijah  Martin, 
Fence  Viewers  and  appraisers.  John  Rudd,  Pound- 
master.  Lemuel  Fitch,  Partridg  L.  Beardsley,  Ozias 
Woodward,  Overseers  of  the  road  leading  from  Wm. 
Tunnicliff 's  westward,  or  the  county  road.  David 
Hollister,  Daniel  Holly,  James  Farr,  Overseers  of  the 
Northern  [Brighton]  road.     Garret  Lake,  Overseer  on 


S6  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

the  road  leading  from  Seth  Allen's  to  Walbridge^s 
Mills.  Israel  Nicholson,  Isaac  Martin,  Overseers  on 
the  Eastern  road. 

*'  Voted,  that  cattle  shall  not  be  fetcht  from  other 
towns  and  be  suffered  to  feed  peaceably  in  the  woods 
or  Commons  of  this  Town.  Voted,  that  Hogs  may- 
run  at  Large  being  well  Yoked." 

A  list  of  the  names  of  the  Men  to  work  on  the 
Highways  in  the  different  Wards  :  "1st,  Wm.  Tunni- 
cliff,  Daniel  Hawks,  Jas.  B.  Nichols,  John  Hitchings, 
Jno.  Hitchings,  Jr.,  John  W.  Holland,  Seth  Allen, 
Daniel  Richards,  Ebenezer  Eaton,  Daniel  Richards, 
Jr.,  Samuel  Williamson,  Samuel  Richards,  John  C. 
Pride,  Lemuel  Fitch.  2d,  Eliphalet  Stuart,  Solomon 
Sands,  Gerrit  Williamson,  Zera  Butterfield,  Abijah 
Hawks,  Abijah  Hawks,  Jr.,  Nathan  Hawks,  Moses 
Frissell,  Israel  Nicholson.  3rd,  Benjamin  Brown, 
Samuel  Martin,  Elijah  Martin,  John  Martin,  Elisha 
Brown,  Nathan  Martin,  Rolon  Robinson,  Seth  Robin- 
son, Isaac  Martin.  4th,  John  Beardsley,  Chaffee 
Green,  Zachariah  Brown,  John  Brown,  James  Cable, 
Obadiah  Beardsley,  Jr.,  Partridg  Beardsley.  5th, 
Nathaniel  Curtice,  Thaddeus  Loomis,  Alpheus  Loomis, 
Joseph  Houghton,  John  Baker,  Samuel  Eaton,  Darius 
Eaton,  Willard  Warner,  Samuel  Gilbert,  Capt.  White, 
John  Densmore,  John  Densmore,  Jr.,  Eliphalet  Dens- 
more,  Ruggles  Spooner,  Timothy  Swan,  Jacob  Gros- 
venor,  Ozias  Woodward.  6th,  Joseph  Coats,  Roswell 
Raiment,  Nathan  Payne,  Samuel  Payne,  James  Hawks, 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD,  S7 

Amasa  Fox,  Constant  Balcom,  Lazarus  Home,  Noah 
Wetherill,  Stephen  Knowlton,  David  HoUister.  7th, 
Daniel  Col  well,  Jurder  Sprague,  John  Hunter,  John 
Cole,  Bartrum  Rounds,  Joseph  Carver,  Wanton  Green, 
Jas.  Farr.  8th,  Levi  Beardsley,  Obadiah  Beardsley, 
Aaron  Pray,  Christo.  Colwell,  Wm.  Sanders,  Timothy 
Tucker,  Ebenezer  Russell,  Levi  Holly,  Daniel  Holly. 
9th,  John  Rudd,  Elisha  Andros,  Ebenezer  Jackson, 
Samuel  Darrow,  Henry  Lake,  James  Lake,  Wm.  Rob- 
inson, Elijah  Gray,  Runnels,    Michael  Jackson, 

Elnathan  Kyes,  Samuel  Latham,  Chester  Kyes,  Wm. 
Patten,  Gerrit  Lake.  10th,  Moses  Noill,  Wm.  Pray, 
Samuel  Cole,  Charles  Cole,  Henry  Jones,  Wm.  Stone, 
Wm.  Simmons,  Daniel  Hills,  Nathan  Jeffords,  Joseph 
Jeffords,  Joseph  Hills,  Jacob  Dicardson,  Amasa  Dodge, 
Hull  Sherwood,  Richard  Pray.  Benj.  Hodge  and  John 
Martin,  Com'rs  of  Highways." 

Other  names  in  town  at  that  time  were  :  Hatch, 
Howard,  Noyes,  Gano,  Woodbury,  Edson,  Nash, 
Churchill,  Wilson,  Aiken,  Ryder,  Bridges,  Sweet, 
Crosby,  Penny,  Pringle,  Cone,  Loveman,  Potter,  Ran- 
dall, Brewster,  Derthick.  It  will  be  remembered  that 
Exeter  and  Plainfield  were  included  in  Richfield  at 
this  time. 

RECORD  OF  FIRST  ELECTION. 

"  Election  being  Legally  warned  Was  Opened  and 
held  at  the  house  of  Mr.  John  Rudd  on  Tuesday  the 
30th  Day  of  April,  1793,  for  the  purpose  of  Choosing 


£R  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

one  Senator  and  two  Assemblymen  for  the  Western 
district  of  this  State.  Adjourned  to  the  house  of  Sam- 
uel Martin,  on  the  1st  Day  of  May,  there  held  and 
Closed."  It  was  customary  in  the  early  days  to  hold 
elections  on  two,  or  three  days,  and  in  different  places 
in  the  town. 

A  FULL  LIST  OF  RICHFIELD'S  SUPERVI- 
SORS, WITH  DATES  OF  ELECTION. 

Nathan  Jeffords,  1793 ;  Thaddeus  Loomis,  1794 
Christopher  Colwell,  1795 ;  Willard  Warner,  1796-7 
Lemuel  Fitch,  1798-1801 ;  Nathaniel  Farnham,  1802 
Lemuel  Fitch,  1803-7  ;  Seth  Allen,  1808 ;  Ozias 
Woodward,  1809-10;  Seth  Allen,  1811;  Benjamin 
Tuckerman,  1812 ;  Obadiah  Beardsley,  1813 ;  John 
Woodbury,  1814  ;  Isaac  Smith,  1815  ;  Ozias  Wood- 
ward, 1816;  Isaac  Smith,  special  meeting  Sept.,  1816; 
Samuel  Colwell,  1817-19  ;  Thomas  Howes,  1820 ;  The- 
odore Page,  1821-2  ;  George  Farnham,  1823-4  ;  John 
Jones,  1825  ;  John  Woodbury,  1826 ;  Samuel  Colwell, 
1827-8 ;  Matthewson  Eddy,  1829-33 ;  Tideman  H. 
Gorton,  1834  ;  Matthewson  Eddy,  1835 ;  Tideman  H. 
Gorton,  1836;  Geo.  Tuckerman,  1837-40;  Nathan 
Palmer,  1841;  G.  Tuckerman,  1842;  N.  Palmer, 
1843-4  ;  Selden  Churchill,  1845-6  ;  Alonzo  Churchill, 
1847-8 ;  N.  Palmer,  1849-50  ;  A.  Churchill,  1851-4  ; 
John  Derthick,  1855 ;  Alvin  Barrus,  1856-8 ;  Hamil- 
ton Colman,  1859  ;  Esek  Cole,  1860-2 ;  Alvin   Losee, 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  S9 

1863  ;  Alvin  Barms,  1864  ;  James  S.  Davenport,  1865 

A.    R.    Elwood,    1866-9;  Norman   Getman,    1870-1 

JudsonC.  Brown,  1872-3;  J.  S.  Davenport,  1874-5 

John  McCredy,  1876  ;  H.  C.  Brockway,  1877-8  ;  Lewis 

McCredy,  1879 ;  H.  C.  Brockway,  1880  ;  Peter  Seeber, 

1881 ;  Olcott  McCredy,  1882 ;  H.  C.  Brockway,  1883  ; 

H.  H.  Getman,  1884-5 ;  M.    F.    Clapsaddle,    1886-7 ; 

Edgar  Gary,  1888 ;  John   B.    Conkling,   1889-92  ;  J. 

D.  Reed,  1893 ;  S.  P.  Barker,  1894-7 ;  L.    C.  Locke, 

1898. 

SCHOOLS. 

The  first  school  house  was  built  in  1791-2,  near 
Monticello,  on  the  road  from  that  place  to  Mayflower 
Tavern,  and  was  of  logs.  It  was  small  and  low,  with 
front  higher  than  rear,  to  give  slope  to  the  bark  roof. 
The  floor  was  made  of  puncheons,  hewn  smooth  with 
an  adz  after  being  placed.  The  windows  had  no  glass 
but  admitted  light  thro'  greased  paper.  Heat  came 
from  a  huge  open  fire-place  on  the  side  opposite  the 
entrance.  The  benches  were  of  split  logs  with  pegs 
for  legs,  and  the  desks  were  made  by  fastening  hewn 
plank  to  the  sides  of  the  building.  "At  a  special 
town  meeting  held  at  the  house  of  John  Rudd,  Nov. 
23,  1795,  to  divide  town  into  convenient  school  Dis- 
tricts, Voted,  that  the  people  in  the  diff'erent  parts  of 
the  Town  may  form  or  organize  themselves." 

The  earliest  record  of  locations  of  school  districts  to 
be  found  was  made  in  1817.  District  No.  1  embraced 
Richfield  Springs  and  Honestville.      No.    9  was  set  off 


so  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

from  No.  1  that  year  and  included  all  of  Richfield  east  of 
Ocquionis  creek.  The  entire  town  had  then  570  children 
between  5  and  15  years  of  age.  During  that  year  a 
school  house  for  No.  9  was  built  on  the  road  that  ran 
from  the  turnpike  to  where  Lakeview  cemetery  is,  and 
was  located  a  little  south  of  a  small  rivulet  that  has 
now  nearly  ceased  to  run.  It  was  a  small  low  structure 
with  a  narrow  "entry"  running  across  the  front.  Light 
came  through  six  small  windows  glazed  with  7x9 
panes  of  very  uneven,  much  blistered  greenish  glass, 
that  gave  a  strange  appearance  to  objects  seen  thro' 
them.  Of  course,  the  paint  upon  it  was  red.  The 
first  term  of  school  was  held  in  it  in  1818,  and  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  the  time,  continued  in  session 
three  months.  The  first  teacher  was  James  L.  Palmer 
of  Federal  Corners.  That  year  the  public  money  for 
the  town  was  $273.92.  No.  1  received  $31.21  for  its 
54  pupils,  and  No.  9  got  $13.87  for  67.  In  1847,  No. 
9's  trustees,  Robert  Benedict,  Sidney  Wilber,  and  Sam- 
uel B.  St.  John,  bought  of  Nathan  and  James  Benedict 
for  $50,  the  lot  now  owned  by  John  E.  Feldmann,  on 
Lake  street,  whither  the  school  house  was  moved  ;  and 
where  it  did  service  till  the  autumn  of  1864,  when  a 
more  commodious  building  was  begun.  The  first  term 
was  taught  in  the  new  house  in  the  spring  of  1865,  by 
W.  C.  Fisk  and  wife.  The  longest  terms  of  service  in 
it  were  8  years  by  E.  D.  Harrington,  and  11  years  by 
H.  A.  Ward.  This  building  is  now  used  for  a  dwell- 
ing and  bottling  house.      Jan.  30,  1883,  No.  9  became 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD,  SI 

a  Union  Free  School  district ;  and  on  April  7  of  the 
same  year  No.  1  joined  it.  After  a  long  and  bitter 
series  of  factional  fights,  the  present  site  of  the  High 
School  building,  at  Park,  Bronner,  and  Center  streets, 
was  chosen,  April  3,  1885.  This  edifice  was  erected 
at  a  cost  of  $22,000,  and  was  ready  for  occupancy  in 
the  Autumn  of  1886.  The  first  corps  of  teachers  was  : 
L.  W.  Covell,  Mrs.  L.  V.  Murphy,  Kate  Van  Deveer, 
Kittie  Stewart,  Fannie  Wadsworth,  Mary  Anderson, 
Anna  Austin.  The  Board  of  Trustees  was :  H.  M. 
DeLong,  James  Mason,  Samuel  R.  Ward,  John  Derth- 
ick,  A.  B.  Losee,  Melvin  Tuller,  Garrett  WikoflT.  The 
present  efficient  head  of  the  High  School  is  Prof.  J. 
Anthony  Bassett. 

Following  is  a  list  as  complete  as  diligent  search 
would  make  it,  of  teachers  in  the  Old  Red,  and  the 
later  Lake  Street  School :  On  the  old  road — James  L. 
Palmer,  Perry  Angell,  Spencer  Hopkins,  Samuel  Col- 
well,  Wm.  Prince,  Loring  Dow,  Loring  Palmer,  Phile- 
tus  Allen,  Wm.  Hinckley,  Whitney  Cary,  Mr.  Harding, 
Mr.  Gray,  E.  B.  Harris,  John  Derthick,  Miss  Cary, 
Callista  El  wood,  Lydia  Green,  Louisa  Starr,  Callista 
Sheldon,  Miss  Herron,  Elizabeth  Benedict,  Cornelia 
Tunnicliff'.  After  removal  to  Lake  street — Stephen 
Mayne,  Daniel  Woodbury,  Geo.  Woodbury,  J.  M. 
Hyde,  E.  D.  Stocker,  Howard  Colman,  Mr.  Newell,  A. 
M.  Turner,  Clark  Burgess,  A.  H.  Sumner,  Ophelia 
King,  Miss  Hutchins,  Anna  Tunnicliff*,  Lydia  Ford. 
In  the  new  Lake  street  building — W.  C.   Fisk,   Frank 


S2  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Sutherland,  John  Fake,  Delos  Thayer,  Frank  Thomp- 
son, E.  D.  Harrington,  J.  M.  Clark,  H.  A.  Ward, 
Frank  Westfall,  Miss  Clark,  Miss  Hill ;  assistants, 
Spencer  Wallace,  Mrs.  Fisk,  Martha  Delong,  Emma 
Getman,  Mrs.  Ames,  Jennie  and  Cora  Cushman,  Anna 
Vrooman,  Eliza  Ferguson,  Miss  Kayner,  Miss  Acker- 
man,  Grace  Swift. 

In  1876,  citizens  in  this  village  and  vicinity  sub- 
scribed a  large  sum  of  money  to  induce  Messrs.  Goodier 
and  Cadwell  to  open  a  seminary  here.  These  gentle- 
men purchased  the  Derthick  House,  now  the  Kendall- 
wood,  and  conducted  most  successfully,  a  school  for 
higher  learning,  accomplishments  and  polish,  from 
December  1876,  till  the  spring  of  1886. 

From  an  early  day  till  the  opening  of  the  Eichfield 
Springs  Seminary,  "select  schools"  were  numerous  and 
well  attended.  For  many  years  the  basement  rooms 
in  the  Universalist  Church  were  used  for  such  schools. 
The  following  named  taught  there  :  David  L.  Gregg, 
afterward  minister  to  Hawaii ;  Mr.  Hannum,  Mr.  Car- 
roll, Rev.  Mr.  Cotter,  Mr.  Wilder,  Caroline  Boyce, 
Aurelia  Hyde,  Maria  Morgan,  Julia  Tracy,  Miss  Miller, 
Mary  Gumming,  Lydia  Cheeseman,  Abbie  Kirtland. 
Mr.  Cotter  kept  what  was  called  the  Episcopalian  school 
for  boys.  It  is  related  that,  at  times,  the  reverend 
gentleman  was  given  to  his  cups  ;  and  that  on  one  of 
his  Mondays  he  fell  asleep  in  his  chair,  tipped  back 
against  the  wall.  His  pupils  concocted  a  plan  to 
waken  him  by  throwing  a  quart  bottle  of  ink  against 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  SS 

the  wall  near  his  head,  and  ''drew  cuts"  to  determine 
who  should  do  it.  The  lot  fell  to  a  boy  from  Herki- 
mer.  It  was  agreed  that  every  boy  should  look  into 
his  book,  and  that  the  thrower  should  shut  his  eyes  at 
the  instant  of  action.  The  bottle  broke  and  the  ink 
gushed  and  spattered  all  over  the  face  and  clothing  of 
the  tipsy  teacher.  Upon  questioning  the  boys,  each 
one  averred  that  he  had  not  seen  the  act.  Mr.  C's 
school  was  closed  that  day. 

These  taught  private  schools  at  other  places  in  the 
village :  Charles  Davis,  Dean  Manley,  Aaron  Dow, 
James  Dow,  S.  S.  Wood,  Mr.  Wendell,  Miss  Griffin, 
Mrs.  Barrus,  Mrs.  King,  Mrs.  Scott,  Lucy  Ward,  De 
Etta  Pratt,  Misses  Churchill,  Miss  Fish. 

POST  OFFICE. 

Before  the  establishment  of  a  post  office,  the  inhabi- 
tants transacted  their  postal  affairs  in  Cooperstown  or 
Cherry  Valley.  Their  mail,  and  the  Otsego  Herald, 
published  in  Cooperstown  by  Elihu  Phinney,  were 
sometimes  brought  by  a  post-rider,  hired  by  the  com- 
munity ;  at  other  times,  a  class  of  thirteen  young  men 
was  formed,  each  member  going  for  the  mail  once  a 
quarter.  The  first  post  office  in  town  was  established 
at  Brighton,  under  the  official  title  Richfield,  July  1, 
1807,  with  Ivory  Holland,  P.  M.  Here  the  office  was 
continued  till  early  in  the  20s,  when  it  was  taken  to 
Monticello,  without  change  in  name.  These  succeeded 
Holland :    David    Waterman,    1815 ;    Samuel    Chase, 


S4  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

1817 ;  Daniel  Richards,  1818 ;  Jonathan  Morgan, 
1819  ;  Veeder  Green,  1821  ;  Daniel  Andrus,  1830  ; 
Jared  C.  Monson,  1835  ;  Jas.  D.  Vaughn,  1845 ;  Alonzo 
Churchill,  1849;  Floyd  C.  Shepard,  1854;  Jas.  D. 
Vaughn,  1855 ;  J.  M.  Hyde,  1862 ;  Lewis  C.  Locke, 
1873  ;  Frank  Snyder,  1893  ;  Geo.  T.  Brockway,  1897. 
The  first  post  office  in  Richfield  Springs  was  established 
Feb.  17,  1830,  as  East  Richfield,  with  James  Hyde,  P. 
M.  Following  is  a  list  of  its  succeeding  P.  M's,  dates 
of  appointments,  and  changes  of  title  :  Leander  San- 
ders, Feb.  6,  1841 ;  Horace  Manley,  June  30,  1841 ; 
changed  to  Canadarago  and  Manley  continued,  March 
5,  1842 ;  changed  to  Richfield  Springs  and  Manley 
continued,  June  29,  1842  ;  Augustus  R.  Elwood,  Sept. 
5,  1842  ;  Moses  Jaques,  Sept.  21,  1848  ;  Cyrus  Osborn, 
June  8,  1849  ;  James  S.  Davenport,  May  23,  1853  ; 
Sainuel  S.  Edick,  1862 ;  E.  A.  Hinds,  1865  ;  James  S. 
Davenport,  1887;  Norman  Getman,  1891;  W.  P. 
Borland,  1895. 

Early  postal  rates  were  :  Letters,  40  miles,  8  cents  ; 
90  miles,  10  cents ;  150  miles,  12J  cents ;  300  miles, 
17  cents ;  500  miles,  20  cents ;  over  500  miles,  25 
cents. 

The  village  P.  0.  was  kept  in  the  American  by 
Hyde,  and  Sanders  ;  Manley  had  it  in  his  house,  now 
The  Elms  ;  Elwood  kept  it  in  his  store  on  the  site  of 
M.  TuUer  &  Son's  ;  Jaques,  in  the  house  where  Jerome 
Crim  lives,  on  Church  street ;  Osborn,  in  his  house  and 
store,  now  the  Berkeley  ;  Davenport,  in  a  small  build- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD,  S& 

ing  opposite  the  Sulphur  Spring  ;  Edick  and  Hinds,  in 
the  Hinds  &  Allen  building,  till  1870,  when  the  lat- 
ter moved  it  to  the  Weeks  block ;  Davenport,  in  the 
Johnson  block,  Main  street,  and  later,  same  building, 
on  Lake  street ;  Getman,  Johnson  block.  Lake  street ; 
Borland,  same  place. 

RICHFIELD  PEOPLE 

In  County,  State,  and  National  Office,  and  Years 
OF  Election  or  Appointment. 

Sheriffs — James  Hawks,  1815 ;  Olcott  McCredy, 
1884. 

Assistant  Judge,  Court  Common  Pleas,  Obadiah 
Beardsley,  1818. 

District  Attorney,  Schuyler  Crippen,  1837. 

County   Judge,    James   Hyde,   1847. 

County  Clerks,  A.  R.  Elwood,  1858  ;  John  B.  Conk- 
ling,  1893-96. 

Surrogate,  A.  C.  Tennant,  1 883-86. 

School  Commissioner,  John  D.  Cary,  1890. 

Coroner,  H.  A.  Ward,  1896. 

Members  of  Assembly,  Daniel  Hawks,  1802-5-11  ; 
Lemuel  Fitch,  1807-14 ;  James  Hyde,  1812-13  ; 
Thomas  Howes,  1818  ;  James  Hawks,  1819 ;  John 
Woodbury,  1824  ;  Samuel  Colwell,  1831 ;  Ivory  Hol- 
land, 1835-6  ;  Olcott  C.  Chamberlin,  1840-47  ;  Alonzo 
Churchill,  1854  ;  Alfred  Chamberlin,  1870-71 ;  James 
S.  Davenport,  1875-6. 

State  Senator,  A.  R.  Elwood,  1869. 


S6  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Delegate  to  Constitutional  Convention,  Daniel 
Hawks,  1801. 

Sergeant-at-Arms,  Assembly,   David  B.  Groat,  1845. 
Presidential  Elector,  Edmund  A.  Ward,  1876. 
Representative   in  Congress,    James   Hawks,    1820. 
Asst.  Assessor  Internal  Revenue,  Isaac  S.  Ford,  1862. 

POPULATION. 

From  the  founding  of  the  town  to  the  war  of  1812, 
the  increase  in  the  population  was  rapid.  In  1814,  a 
census  taken  chiefly  to  report  the  males  capable  of 
bearing  arms,  showed  the  entire  number  of  people  to 
be  2,365,  of  which  9  were  Indians,  and  two  were  ne- 
gro slaves.  The  number  of  males  between  18  and  45, 
subject  to  military  duty,  was  388.  From  this  time 
there  was  a  steady  diminution  in  population  till  1860. 
In  1825  it  had  fallen  to  1893  ;  in  1830,  to  1752  ;  in 
1845,  to  1670  ;  in  1860,  to  1543.  In  1880  the  num- 
ber had  increased  to  2,515  ;  in  1890,  to  2,699.  For 
1898  the  figures  are  about  2,700.  In  1796  there  were 
229  voters  ;  in  1896,  the  number  voting  was  758. 

The  population  of  Richfield  Springs,  when  incorpo- 
rated in  1861,  was  400.     In  1898  it  is  1,650. 

GENERAL  TRAININGS. 

In  early  times  General  Training  days  were  occasions 
of  great  public  interest,  and  were  the  yearly  gatherings 
of  the  people,  resembling  in  many  respects  the  annual 
fairs  now  held.     In   this  town  these   events   occurred 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  S7 

near  Brighton,  or  at  Monticello,  and  thither  repaired 
on  training  day,  the  gallant  militia  to  drill.  Occa- 
sionally, brigade  drills  would  be  ordered ;  and  these 
were  held  in  Cooperstown,  lasting  three  days. 

In  September,  1812,  Captain  Levi  Beardsley,  in  pur- 
suance of  general  orders,  called  out  his  company, 
"  armed  and  equipped  as  the  law  directs,"  to  drill  in 
Monticello.  War  with  Great  Britain  had  been  de- 
clared and  party  spirit  ran  high.  The  Federalists  were 
opposed  to  the  war,  but  the  Democrats,  or  Republicans, 
as  they  were  then  called,  warmly  espoused  it.  After 
drilling  his  men  a  short  time,  Capt.  B.  made  a  speech 
in  favor  of  the  war.  He  was  ambitious  to  offer  him- 
self and  a  volunteer  company  for  the  United  States 
service,  and  had  filled  his  speech  with  sound  and  fury. 
At  its  close  the  men  were  ordered  to  shoulder  arms, 
and  such  as  would  volunteer,  to  follow  the  drum. 
Every  Republican,  or  Democrat,  responded  and 
marched  out ;  but  the  Federalists  remained  in  such 
numbers  that  the  Captain  was  thwarted  in  his  scheme 
for  military  glory.  Later  a  draft  was  ordered,  and  a 
number  of  men  was  taken  from  Richfield.  There  was 
also  a  number  of  volunteers. 

LIBRARIES. 

About  the  year  1795,  a  library  was  started  by  con- 
tributions at  Monticello,  which  flourished  for  many 
years,  and  was  composed  of  a  large  number  of  the 
standard  books  of  the  time.      In  1809,  it  was  incorpo- 


S8  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

rated  under  the  title,  Richfield  Columbian  Library. 
After  many  more  years  of  usefulness  it  was  discontin- 
ued, and  the  volumes  were  distributed.  Soon  after  the 
founding  of  the  Columbian  library,  one  for  juveniles 
was  opened,  and  continued  till  1807.  In  1860  a  cir- 
culating library  was  organized  in  Richfield  Springs  by 
a.  number  of  ladies,  and  was  continued  about  35 
years.  During  the  existence  of  the  Seminary,  the 
Browning  Daughters  Society  accumulated  a  fine  libra- 
ry, which  was  distributed  after  1886.  A  set  of  cyclo- 
pedias was  given  to  the  High  School. 

BURYING  GROUNDS. 

The  first  actual  settlers  found  an  Indian  burying 
ground  where  the  Lake  House  is,  and  here  for  a  time  bur- 
ials of  people  who  had  died  in  the  region  of  Federal  Cor- 
ners were  made.  The  first  burying  place  in  the  west 
end  of  the  town  was  on  the  present  farm  of  Clarence 
Colwell.  The  Church  street  burying  ground  in  Rich- 
field Springs  was  given  by  Nathan  Dow,  in  1822,  and 
deeded  to  the  trustees  of  St.  Luke's  church,  Monticello. 
It  contained  an  acre  of  land  on  the  east  side  of  Church 
street.  It  is  not  used  now,  and  is  hidden  from  view 
by  the  Presbyterian  church  and  a  high  fence.  The 
first  interment  made  in  it  was  that  of  Nancy  Gould,  a 
grandchild  of  the  donor,  in  August,  1822.  Lake  View 
cemetery  was  purchased  by  the  village  trustees  in  1871. 
The  Roman  Catholic  cemetery  was  consecrated  in  1882. 
The  Monticello  cemetery  was  opened  in  1803. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD,  39 

EARLY    BALLS. 

In  the  good  old  times  the  people  occasionally  re- 
laxed sufficiently  to  indulge  in  dancing,  or  ''frolick- 
ing'* as  it  was  called.  Managers  would  be  appointed 
to  make  out  the  lists  of  those  to  be  invited.  Tickets, 
of  which  the  following  is  a  copy,  would  be  sent  out : 
'*  Independence  Ball !  Mr.  A.  B.  is  invited  to  attend  a 
Fourth  of  July  Ball  at  Richfield,  and  to  wait  on  Miss 
C.  D.,  who  is  also  invited."  The  gentleman  was  con- 
sidered bound  to  invite  the  lady  named  ;  and  the  lady 
almost  invariably  accepted.  At  balls  held  in  summer 
the  participants  would  sometimes  assemble  before  noon, 
dance  a  little,  dine,  and  at  once  resume  the  pleasures 
of  the  occasion,  and  dance  the  hours  away  till  day 
light.  In  winter  they  usually  went  in  their  rude 
sleighs  ;  but  in  summer  the  gentlemen  provided  them- 
selves with  extra  horses  for  the  fair  ladies  to  ride  to 
the  "  frolic."  The  first  dancing  school  was  taught  at 
Monticello  in  the  winter  of  1805-6  by  a  strolling 
dancing  master,  who  instructed  the  rustic  youth  in 
"jigs,  French  fours,  and  figures." 

Scow-parties  were  popular  in  the  early  part  of  the 
century.  There  were  several  very  large  flat-bottomed 
boats  on  the  lake,  each  capable  of  carrying  a  large 
number  of  people.  It  was  a  custom  for  parties  to  ride 
about  the  lake  on  these  barges,  and  after  luncheon 
thereon,  to  repair  to  some  place  ashore  and  have  a 
dance. 


JjO  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

GAME  AND  FISH. 

This  region  was  once  a  paradise  for  hunters,  abound- 
ing in  all  kinds  of  game.  Moose,  bears,  deer  and  elk, 
wolves,  beaver,  otter  and  martens,  and  the  smaller 
game  were  very  numerous.  Wild  fowl  in  countless 
numbers  disported  themselves  on  the  lakes ;  and  the 
waters  teemed  with  fish.  The  migrations  of  pigeons 
in  spring  and  fall  occurred  in  vast  armies,  sometimes  a 
mile  wide,  and  near  enough  together  to  darken  the  sun 
like  a  cloud.  At  times  these  living  streams  of  myriads 
of  birds  would  flow  onward  in  swift  flight  nearly  an 
entire  day.  The  great  naturalist,  Alexander  Wilson, 
estimated  a  flock  of  pigeons  that  passed  over  him  for 
the  greater  part  of  a  day,  to  have  been  a  mile  in 
width,  and  240  miles  long,  and  to  have  contained 
2,230,272,000  birds.  The  writer  has  not  seen  a  flock 
of  pigeons  since  the  autumn  of  1881.  Fishing  was  so 
easy  as  nearly  to  be  no  sport.  In  the  season  of  run- 
ning, salmon  were  so  numerous  that  they  could  be 
caught  in  the  hands  in  the  smaller  streams  when  the 
waters  would  begin  to  recede ;  and  before  damming 
the  Susquehanna,  herring  and  shad  sought  the  waters 
of  Canadarago  in  vast  schools.  The  brooks  abounded 
with  speckled  trout,  and  fifty  years  ago  these  fish  could 
be  taken  with  a  pin-hook. 

EARLY  CARE   OF  PAUPERS. 

In  early  times  at*  town-meeting,  the  town's  paupers 
would  be  put  up  at  auction,  and  would  be  cared  for 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  41 

during  the  ensuing  year  by  the  lowest  bidders,  who 
bound  themselves  **to  board,  clothe,  wash  and  mend 
properly"  for  the  year.  Prices  ranged  from  40  cents 
to  $1.25  per  week.  When  of  sufficient  age,  the  paupers 
were  ''  bound  out,"  the  master  agreeing  in  all  cases 
that  he  would,  when  the  term  of  service  was  legally 
ended,  "  allow  and  deliver  one  good  new  Suit  of  Holy- 
day  clothes,  of  the  Value  of  at  Least  twenty  dollars,  a 
good  suit  of  every  day  wear,  and  one  new  Bible." 

UNUSUAL   WEATHER. 

In  1807  snow  fell  to  the  depth  of  six  feet  early  in 
April.  This  melted  rapidly,  causing  high  water  and 
destruction  of  bridges. 

The  summer  of  1816  was  known  thro'out  the  East- 
ern and  Middle  States  as  the  coldest  ever  experienced 
by  persons  then  living.  From  old  diaries  and  journals 
the  following  facts  are  gathered  :  January  and  Febru- 
ary were  mild.  March  and  April  were  not  unusually 
cold.  May  was  ushered  in  by  a  violent  snow  storm, 
and  the  formation  of  thick  ice.  June  was  the  coldest 
month  of  roses  ever  known  here.  Corn  was  killed, 
and  tho'  replanted  again  and  again  by  the  shivering 
husbandmen,  not  any  ripened.  Seed  corn  sold  the 
following  spring  for  $5  a  bushel.  Instead  of  roses  and 
buttercups,  there  were  snow  and  ice.  The  first  week 
in  June  a  number  of  Richfield 's  Universalists  attended 
a  three-day's  meeting  in  Cooperstown,  and  came  home 
thro'  three  inches  of  snow.      On  the  fourth  of  July 


42  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

snow  fell.  August  was  worse  than  any  previous 
month,  and  the  two  following  were  cold,  with  frequent 
freezes  and  snow  storms.  Wheat  and  oats  were  har- 
vested and  potatoes  were  dug  in  blinding  flurries  of 
snow.  Hay  was  very  scarce,  and  the  cattle  were  kept 
from  starvation  during  the  next  winter  by  felling 
beeches  and  birches,  from  which  the  hungry  animals 
browsed.  During  this  summer  the  Richfield  Hotel 
was  built,  and  the  workmen  were  often  seriously  in- 
commoded by  the  inclement  weather.  The  succeed- 
ing four  summers  were  also  cold  ones,  and  crops  were 
poor  ;  but  the  severity  of  these  was  not  so  great  as  in 
1816. 

In  marked  contrast  to  the  brumal  summers  just 
mentioned,  was  the  winter  of  1827-8,  when  there  was 
a  very  summery  season,  with  scarcely  any  snow  or 
frost.  On  Canadarago  lake  there  was  ice  but  a  little 
while. 

June  11,  1842,  this  record  was  made :  *'  Snow  and 
very  cold." 

April  14,  1857,  three  feet  of  snow  fell,  and  in  less 
than  a  week  five  feet  of  snow  covered  this  entire 
region. 

THE  SUNKEN  ISLAND. 

Where  lies  the  shoal  in  Canadarago  Lake  called 
Sunken  Island,  formerly  stood  a  real  island.  It  was 
a  small  one,  only  a  half  acre  in  extent ;  but  it  was  cov- 
ered with  a  growth  of  trees  that  waved  their  branches 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  4S 

as  proudly  as  those  upon  its  greater  sister  so  justly  cel- 
ebrated for  her  beauty. 

A  portion  of  its  small  extent  was  marshy,  but  the 
northern  end  was  bold.  During  the  winter  of  1815— 
16  there  was  a  great  depth  of  snow  upon  the  ground 
quite  early,  and  the  ice  upon  the  lake  was  unusually 
thick.  Early  in  the  spring  there  was  very  warm 
weather  for  many  days.  Streams  were  swollen  above 
their  banks  and  the  ice  on  the  lake  was  covered  with 
deep  water.  The  ice  soon  broke  up  and  was  driven 
southward  by  a  fierce  north  wind,  which  cleared  the 
northern  half  of  the  lake.  Then  ensued  a  hard  freeze, 
cementing  the  broken  ice  into  a  compact  mass.  In  a 
day  or  two  a  high  wind  from  the  south  arose.  The 
immense  floe  was  set  in  motion,  and  by  its  irresistible 
weight  and  impact,  actually  swept  the  soil  of  the  island, 
with  its  burden  of  trees,  into  the  depths  beyond.  To 
this  day  the  bottom  of  the  lake  just  north  of  the  spot 
is  covered  with  the  trunks  and  limbs  of  the  trees  sub- 
merged over  80  years  ago. 

OAKS  CREEK  DAM. 

The  building  of  a  dam  across  Oaks  creek  near  the 
outlet  of  Canadarago  Lake,  in  1825,  created  a  great 
deal  of  excitement  in  the  towns  of  Richfield,  Otsego 
and  Exeter,  and  town  meetings  were  held  to  consider 
the  matter.  In  Richfield  a  special  town  meeting  was 
held  at  the  house  of  Jacob  Osborn,  Aug.  25,  1825,  **to 
take  steps  to  prevent  the  building  of  a  dam  near  the 


44  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

outlet  of  the  lake."     The  following  was  adopted  : 

"Whereas,  Certain  individuals  are  engaged  in  con- 
structing a  dam  across  the  outlet  from  Schuylers  Lake, 
with  a  view  of  raising  the  water  two  and  a  half,  to  three 
feet  above  its  ordinary  height,  and  believing  that  it 
will  produce  individual  damage,  and  render  the  terri- 
tory unhealthy. 

Resolved,  That  this  meeting  disapprove  of  the  erec- 
tion of  said  dam  ;  and 

Resolved,  That  in  case  means  are  not  taken  to  pre- 
vent the  building  of  said  dam,  and  the  same,  after  be- 
ing built  shall  prove  detrimental  to  the  health  of  indi- 
viduals, we  will  make  use  of  every  necessary  and  legal 
means  to  have  the  same  demolished  and  the  waters  of 
said  lake  restored  to  their  bounds." 

In  spite  of  protests,  however,  the  dam  was  built. 
Efforts  were  made  to  have  the  dam  removed,  but  they 
were  all  unavailing. 

DISTILLERIES. 

There  seems  to  have  been  a  considerable  demand, 
during  the  closing  years  of  the  last  century,  and  the 
early  part  of  the  present,  for  ardent  liquors  ;  and  there 
were  about  30  distilleries  in  Otsego  county  for  making 
whisky,  which  in  those  times  began  to  take  the  place 
of  rum.  One  stood  where  the  Scotch  cap  factory  is, 
before  Runyan's  foundry  was  erected  there  ;  and  an- 
other near  the  east  end  of  James  street,  on  the  old 
road.     The  demand  for  beer  was  not  great  enough  to 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  46 

support  a  brewery  that  was  set  up  in  1794  at  Coopers- 
town,  by  Mulcock  &  Morgan. 

Of  mixed  drinks,  kill-devil  or  stone-fence,  a  mix- 
ture of  hard  cider  and  whisky,  was  the  principal  one 
in  winter.  In  seasons  of  arduous  summer  labor, 
switchel,  a  combination  of  hard  cider,  molasses  and 
ginger,  was  a  favorite.  In  nearly  every  family  the 
whisky-jug  was  as  common  as  the  water-pail,  and  upon 
occasions  of  assemblage,  the  glass  went  round.  Drunk- 
enness, however,  was  as  much  deprecated  as  it  is  now. 

WAR  TIMES.  1861-5. 

During  the  civil  war,  Richfield  responded  nobly  to 
the  calls  for  volunteers,  and  from  a  population  less 
than  1,600,  sent  115  from  the  town.  In  addition,  50 
men  were  enlisted  in  New  York  City  and  credited  to 
Richfield 's  quota.  To  pay  bounties,  the  town  raised 
162,000. 

Thro'out  all  the  years  of  the  war,  the  ladies  were 
diligent  in  good  work  for  the  soldiers  in  garrison,  camp 
and  hospital.  Many  boxes  of  underclothing,  lint, 
bandages,  and  delicacies,  found  their  way  to  the  front 
from  this  region.  The  ladies  of  Springfield  got  up  a 
fair  for  the  U.  S.  Sanitary  Commission,  in  Pegg's  hotel 
in  Springfield  Center,  on  the  evening  of  Sept.  2,  1864. 
While  crowded  with  people,  the  floor  fell,  and  several 
persons  were  seriously  hurt,  among  them  Rev.  and 
Mrs.  S.  R.  Ward,  of  this  place.  One  lady,  Mrs.  Hewes, 
died  from  her  injuries. 


46  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

There  were  but  few  hereabout  that  did  not  heartily 
espouse  the  Union  cause.  There  were  those,  however, 
whose  utterances  caused  them  to  be  called  *'  copper- 
heads," a  name  given  to  northern  men  whose  sympa- 
thies were  with  the  South  and  its  principles.  In  Exe- 
ter, Timothy  Herkimer  was  arrested  in  August,  1863, 
on  the  ground  of  uttering  "treasonable  sentiments," 
and  taken  to  the  county  jail.  A  writ  of  habeas  corpus 
was  granted  by  Judge  Samuel  Nelson.  President  Lin- 
coln had,  however,  suspended  the  privileges  of  that 
writ  thro'out  the  Union,  in  consequence  of  the  pro- 
nounced anti-war  spirit  in  some  parts  of  the  North  ; 
and  Herkimer  was  taken  to  Fort  LaFayette,  and  was 
kept  a  prisoner  for  some  time. 

There  was  among  the  Republicans  great  activity  in 
the  Union  League ;  and  among  the  Democrats  were 
some  that  belonged  to  the  Knights  of  the  Golden 
Circle. 

Here,  as  elsewhere,  small  change  became  scarce,  and 
postage  stamps  were  commonly  used  in  making  change. 
Losee  &  Hinds,  and  El  wood  &  Bryan,  issued  "shin- 
plasters"  in  denominations  of  10,  25,  and  50  cents,  in 
1862.  These  promised  "  to  pay  the  Bearer  (the  sum 
named)  On  Demand,  at  their  Store,  in  State  Currency, 
when  presented  in  sums  of  One  Dollar  and  upwards." 
This  convenient  small  money  was  superseded  in  about 
a  year  by  the  fractional  currency  issued  by  the  govern- 
ment. 

Prices  of  commodities  reached  high  figures  during 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  47 

the  war  period.  A  few  examples  of  maximum  prices  : 
Flour,  per  barrel,  $18  ;  A  sugar,  per  pound,  30  cents  ; 
butter,  50  cents ;  cheese,  30  cents ;  tea,  $1.75  ;  best 
yard-wide  sheeting,  per  yard,  70  cents ;  calico,  60  cents  ; 
pork,  per  barrel,  $40 ;  dressed  pork,  per  cwt.,  $18 ; 
kerosene  oil,  per  gal.,  $1.25  ;  hay,  per  ton,  $40. 

On  Monday,  April  10th,  1865,  came  the  glad  news 
that  the  rebel  army  under  Lee  had  surrendered  to  Gen. 
U.  S.  Grant.  Like  wildfire  spread  the  tidings  thro  vil- 
lage and  country.  The  intense  suspense  of  four 
weary,  bitter  years  was  broken.  Men,  women,  and 
children,  rushed  into  the  village  streets,  and  people 
from  the  country  came  crowding  in.  Great  was  the  re- 
joicing, and  many  were  the  glad  tears.  People  formed 
in  line  and  marched  up  and  down,  singing  and  hurrah- 
ing in  their  thankfulness  and  enthusiasm.  Groups  of 
singers  united  their  voices  in  Rally  Round  the  Flag, 
Boys,  When  Johnnie  Comes  Marching  Home,  We'll 
Hang  Jeff  Davies  to  a  Sour  Apple  Tree,  and  other  songs 
of  the  day.  Many  teetotalers  looked  upon  the  wine 
that  day,  and  some  of  their  sayings  and  doings  are  not 
forgotten  to  this  day.  Everything  that  would  make  a 
noise  was  brought  into  use.  Every  dinner  gong  and 
bell ;  every  tin  horn  in  the  hardware  stores,  were  put 
to  inmelodious  use ;  and  the  church  bells  were  rung 
incessantly.  Guns  and  anvils  were  fired,  and  people 
shouted  till  they  were  hoarse  for  days  afterward.  A 
mass  meeting  was  held  in  Washington  Hall,  now  the 
Waiontha,  at  which   Rev.    S.    R.    Ward  and  Geo.  A. 


4S  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Starkweather  spoke  stirringly.  It  was  a  day  of  rejoic- 
ing such  as  this  town  never  saw  before,  and  has  not 
seen  since. 

Five  days  later  came  the  awful  intelligence  that 
President  Lincoln  had  been  assassinated.  His  tragic 
and  untimely  end  brought  mourning  to  every  home, 
and  tears  to  every  cheek.  What  a  revulsion  of  feeling  ! 
The  bells  that  but  a  few  days  before  had  rung  out  joy- 
ful notes  for  ended  war,  now  tolled  a  sad  requiem  for 
the  great,  gentle-hearted  Martyr.  Flags  were  draped 
with  black  and  hung  at  half-mast ;  and  services  were 
held  in  the  churches. 

Here  follow  the  names  of  the  soldiers  that  went  to 
the  front  from  Richfield  :  Wm.  Austin,  Wm.  A.  Austin, 
John  Ames,  Lewis  Allen,  David  Allen,  Benj.  F.  Ab- 
bott, Nelson  Bowdish,  Onslow  Bunnell,  Menzo  Barrus, 
Jno.  H.  Burgess,  Albert  Bullis,  Allen  Buchanan, 
James  Brown,  Delos  Balch,  Henry  Buckus,  Hamilton 
Bailey,  Abel  Bunnell,  Chas.  Caney,  James  Caney, 
Edgar  Gary,  Oliver  Carson,  Albert  Cook,  Samuel  Chase, 
Alfred  Christman,  Daniel  Cosgrove,  Lorenzo  W. 
Cheney,  Albert  V.  Coats,  U.  F.  Doubleday,  LaMott 
DevendorfF,  Albert  DevendorfF,  Delos  Dockstader, 
Wesley  Dexter,  Abner  Doubleday,  James  S.  Daven- 
port, John  E.  Dana,  Winne  Dutcher,  Henry  0.  Eason, 
Irving  Fort,  Charles  Fisk,  Irving  Fish,  John  Fish, 
Charles  Fenton,  R.  G.  Firman,  John  I.  Finch,  Free- 
man Firman,  George  Green,  Wm. Gallagher,  Vandeveer 
Goodspeed,  Thomas  Golden,  John  Gilroy,  Alvarro  Har- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  •  49 

rington,  Alonzo  Hammond,  Albert  Ham,  Hiram  C. 
Hinds,  Delevan  Harrington,  Orville  Hinds,  L.  C. 
Huntley,  S.  F.  Huntley,  J.  Henrick,  Gustavus  Har- 
rington, T.  I.  Jaques,  Murtagh  Keough,  John 
Kane,  Jared  Lansing,  Tracy  Loomis,  Orlando 
Lane,  Leonard  Love,  Otis  W.  Ludden,  John  Moak, 
Daniel  Maxfield,  Wm.  McCulloch,  Wm.  Mann,  Richard 
Matthews,  Isaac  Minor,  George  Minor,  Wm.  W.  Matte- 
son,  Justin  Osterhout,  Wm.  Osterhout,  Wm.  Palmer, 
John  Rosa,  John  Rhyde,  John  Shaw,  Charles  Strange, 
John  Steele,  Albert  Smith,  George  Stover,  George  Stev- 
ens, Michael  Shields,  Hiram  Soule,  Peter  Smith,  H. 
DeW.  Smith,  John  Sweet,  Henry  Smith,  Robert 
Shutes,  Wm.  Snedeker,  James  Tucker,  George  Thomas, 
Abram  Vedder,  Richard  Weldon,  Wesley  Waterman, 
Nelson  Walrath,  Jay  Winne,  John  Waterman,  John 
Wright,  0.  D.  Welch,  Alfred  Welch,  Geo.  White,  Milo 
West,  Geo.  Welch,  Luzern  Wheeler,  Thomas  Weldon, 
Thomas  F.  Weldon,  Addis  Young,  George  Young,  James 
H.  Zoller. 

These  soldiers  enlisted  in  the  following  named  New 
York  regiments  :  76th,  121st,  152nd,  44th  (Ellsworth's 
Avengers)  infantry ;  2nd  and  16th  Heavy  Artillery  ; 
3rd  Light  Artillery  ;  2nd  Light  Cavalry  (Harris')  ;  Ist 
U.  S.  Sharpshooters  (Berdan's).  Those  killed  in  action 
were  Charles  Caney,  Thomas  F.  Weldon,  Samuel 
Chase,  F.  H.  Firman,  John  Fish.  Those  dying  from 
disease  or  wounds  were   Richard  Matthews,    Lorenzo 


60  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Cheney,  Tracy  Loomis,  Wm.  Snedeker,  George  Thomas, 
John  Steele. 

ANTI-MASONRY. 

Upon  the  springing  up  of  the  anti-Masonic  party  in 
1826,  after  the  disappearance  of  Morgan,  there  were 
strange  poHtical  changes  in  the  Otsego  towns.  Spring- 
field, Otsego,  Cherry  Valley,  and  Middlefield,  were 
strong  Federalist  towns  ;  but  the  anti-Mason  movement 
made  them  as  strongly  Democratic.  Richfield,  Plain- 
field,  Exeter,  and  Hartwick,  had  been  Democratic  ;  but 
the  same  disturbing  element  placed  them  in  the  Fed- 
eralist column.  During  the  existence  of  the  anti-Ma- 
sonic party  there  were  much  bitterness  and  intolerance. 
Those  who  were  not  Masons,  and  still  refused  to  join 
the  anti-Masonic  party,  were  more  harshly  spoken  of 
than  the  Masons  themselves  ;  and  were  stigmatized  as 
Masons'  ''jacks."  For  a  time  during  this  period  the 
Masons  did  not  hold  regular  meetings  from  fear  of  vio- 
lence ;  but  kept  their  charter  alive  by  meetings  held 
occasionally  in  some  attic,  or  other  out-of-the-way  place. 

POLITICAL  CAMPAIGNS. 

The  campaign  of  1840  awakened  great  enthusiasm 
among  the  Whigs  in  this  region.  Log  cabins  erected 
upon  strong  wagons  were  drawn  from  place  to  place, 
and  speeches  were  made  from  their  open  doors.  A 
captive  'coon  and  a  barrel  of  cider  were  furnishings  of 
each  cabin.      A  large  cabin  in   honor  of  the  hero  of 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  51 

Tippecanoe,  was  built  on  the  site  of  the  Brunswick, 
and  in  it  several   spirited  meetings  were  held. 

During  the  campaign  of  1860,  the  Republicans  and 
the  Democrats  had  uniformed  companies,  called  respect- 
ively ''Wideawakes"  and  "Little  Giants."  The 
former  carried  upon  a  pikestaff  a  large  beetle,  that 
rose  in  the  air  and  fell  back  upon  a  wedge  in  a  log,  as 
its  carrier  marched  along. 

In  the  fall  of  1884,  in  honor  of  Cleveland's  election, 
the  Democrats  held  a  barbecue.  An  ox  was  roasted, 
and  was  served  December  2nd  at  the  intersection  of 
Main  and  Lake  streets.  A  balloon  was  sent  up  bearing 
the  names.  Dr.  Getman,  D.  W.  Harrington,  Eugene 
Hinds,  Menzo  Clapsaddle,  H.  A.  Ward. 

PRIZE  FARM  IN  1820. 

About  the  year  1820,  a  prize  was  offered  in  Otsego 
county  for  the  best  farm  within  its  precincts.  After 
the  inspectors,  appointed  for  the  purpose,  had  visited 
Captain  Willard  Eddy's  carefully  tilled  fields  near 
Monticello,  had  examined  his  orderly  fences  and  stone- 
walls, and  had  tasted  the  fruits  from  his  well  cultivated 
orchards  of  apple,  pear,  and  peach,  (for  peaches  at  that 
early  day  grew  in  abundance  and  perfection  in  Rich- 
field,) they  awarded  him  a  certificate  attesting  to  the 
fact  that  his  was  the  best  all-round  farm  in  the  county. 
In  addition  to  this,  a  prize  in  money  was  given.  Eddy 
farmed  as  he  fought  in  the  Revolution — well. 


62  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

INDIANS. 
The  region  around  Canadarago  Lake  was  the  home 
of  the  Oneidas  before  its  settlement  by  the  whites.  Sir 
William  Johnson,  in  a  report  to  the  Crown  in  1763, 
states  "  that  the  Oneidas  consist  of  emigrants  in  the 
region  of  the  headwaters  of  the  Susquehanna,  besides 
the  two  principal  villages,"  near  the  sacred  stone.  The 
cutting  down  of  a  small  tract  of  primeval  forest  famil- 
iarly known  as  the  First  Lake  Woods,  on  the  road 
from  Richfield  Springs  to  the  lake,  removes  a  beautiful 
landmark,  to  the  great  regret  of  those  who  know  the 
spot  and  its  associations.  Near  the  close  of  the  last 
century,  there  came  from  the  Connecticut  valley,  two 
Mohegan  Indians,  Captain  John  and  his  son,  Sam 
Brushell,  or  the  Panther.  They  built  a  wigwam  on 
the  high  ground  at  the  head  of  the  lake,  not  far  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Otskonoga,  and  a  short  distance  from 
the  ice-houses.  Here  they  lived  several  years.  The 
elder  was  drowned  in  the  lake.  Soon  afterward  the 
Panther  brought  a  squaw  from  Connecticut,  and  erected 
a  log  hut  in  the  woods  lately  felled.  In  this  rude 
cabin,  under  the  singing  pines  and  hemlocks,  the 
Panther  and  his  squaw,  Polly,  lived  many  years,  keep- 
ing house  in  the  true  aboriginal  fashion,  Polly  doing 
the  drudgery,  and  the  Panther  hunting  and  fishing. 
At  diflerent  points  around  the  lake  are  places  that  de- 
note permanent  Indian  camps,  and  from  these  many 
flint  arrow-heads  have  been  taken.  The  Panther  could 
tell  at  a  glance  what  tribe  had  made  them,  tho'  to  a 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  63 

white  man  there  was  nothing  to  show  any  difference. 
The  Panther  was  extremely  proud  of  the  turtle  totem 
tattooed  upon  his  breast,  for  it  was  a  mark  of  the  high- 
est caste  of  aboriginal  nobility.  About  1846,  Sam  and 
Polly  made  one  of  their  periodical  trips  to  their  native 
scenes,  and  were  never  seen  here  again.  Indian  John 
was  buried  on  a  knoll  opposite  the  Lake  House.  Bailey, 
in  his  Richfield  Springs,  says  that  the  body  was  *'  after- 
ward removed  by  students  of  Dr.  J.  L.  Palmer,  which  fact 
becoming  suspected  by  the  Indians  living  in  Oneida,  a 
large  delegation  made  its  appearance  at  the  lake  and 
prepared  to  open  the  grave  of  Captain  John.  At  this 
moment  Mr.  Freedom  Chamberlin  appeared  on  the 
ground  and  forbade  any  interference  with  the  grave, 
as  it  was  located  on  his  land.  He  well  knew  that  had 
the  Indians  become  certain  that  the  body  had  been  re- 
moved, their  threats  toward  Dr.  Palmer  would  certain- 
ly have  been  carried  out." 

The  Panther  had  strong  ideas  as  to  the  respect  that 
should  be  shown  to  his  property.  Upon  one  occasion 
George  Williams  and  Fred  Morley,  boys  of  that  day, 
took  his  boat  without  permission,  for  a  trip  to  the  island. 
The  Panther  followed  them  in  another  boat  and  caught 
them  on  the  shore  of  the  island.  He  took  from  them 
their  pocket  knives  and  all  other  valuables ;  and  after 
beating  them  mercilessly  with  a  paddle,  he  took  both 
boats  away,  leaving  the  boys  to  get  away  as  best  as 
they  could.  On  another  occassion,  Olcott  Chamberlin 
took  his  boat  to  use  in  ''jack -light"  spearing.     While 


64  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD, 

thus  engaged  he  heard  the  order  "  Come  shore ;  my 
boat ;"  from  a  nearby  bank.  Mr.  C.  paid  no  attention 
but  kept  on  with  his  search  for  fish.  In  another  in- 
stant a  rifle  shot  was  heard,  and  the  pine  knots  in  the 
"jack"  were  scattered  by  the  ball.  The  boat  was  im- 
mediately returned. 

INDIAN  TRAIL. 

The  old  Indian  trail  from  the  Mohawk  to  the  Una- 
dilla  country  led  up  thro'  Columbia,  and  passed  to  the 
south,  a  short  distance  to  the  west  of  Richfield  Springs. 
Over  this  trail  Gen.  Nicholas  Herkimer  passed  with  his 
detachment  of  troops  in  June,  1777,  on  his  way  to  hold 
an  interview  with  the  Indian  chieftain,  Brant,  or  Thay- 
endanegea.  Over  this  trail,  too,  passed  the  patriot  scouts 
Herkimer,  Helmer,  Schuyler  and  Smith,  from  the  Mo- 
hawk forts,  to  and  from  the  Indian  country. 

AN  INDIAN  FIGHT. 

An  Indian  fight  occurred  during  the  Revolution,  at 
the  brook  that  falls  into  the  lake  at  the  Lake  House. 
A  party  of  whites  coming  from  the  south  was  met  and 
checked  at  this  point.  The  two  parties  spent  the  rest 
of  the  day  exchanging  shots  without  definite  results. 
After  night-fall,  the  whites  discovered  by  a  camp  fire 
on  Oak  Ridge,  that  the  Indians  had  retreated  around 
the  head  of  the  lake.  Fearing  that  the  redskins  would 
attack  them  from  the  rear,  the  whites  went  back  as  far 
as  the  east  bank  of  Oaks  creek.     Their  suspicions  were 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  65 

well  founded,  for  after  waiting  in  ambush  a  short  time, 
the  Indians  came  and  attempted  to  cross  the  stream.  A 
volley  from  the  wJiites  killed  two,  and  wounded  several 
others  of  the  savages. 

BATHING  HOUSES. 

Soon  after  1820,  Dr.  Horace  Manley  built  the  first 
bath  house  near  the  spring  on  Main  street,  and  near 
Gary  Gottage.  Mr.  Whitney  built  a  more  extensive 
one  near  where  the  east  end  of  the  Spring  House  was. 
During  a  severe  wind  storm  the  roof  was  blown  across 
the  street  and  over  the  house  where  the  Berkeley  stands. 
The  present  handsome  and  complete  establishment  was 
erected  in  1890. 

GANADARAGO  RACE  COURSE. 

The  road  around  the  sides  of  Canadarago  Hill,  now 
a  grass  grown   way,   was   Richfield 's   first  race  course. 

It  was  made  by  Bryan  and  Smith  in  1867.  A  large 
building  with  two  floors  was  erected  upon  the  summit 
of  the  hill,  to  enable  people  to  watch  the  progress  of 
the  races.     This  was  demolished  many  years  ago. 


Richfield  Springs. 

After  the  opening  of  the  3rd  Great  Western  Turn 
pike  thro'  the  site  of  the  village  in  1808,  people  began 
to  settle  here,  and  commenced  those  pioneer  operations 
which  have  resulted  in  Richfield  Springs,  the  beauti- 
ful. A  part  of  its  history  is  that  of  the  town,  and  is 
elsewhere  told.  It  is  believed  that  the  first  house  in 
this  village  was  built  of  logs,  and  stood  on  the  east 
side  of  Canadarago  Hill.  This  was  the  home  of  Franz 
Freba,  who  purchased  land  of  the  original  grantee  in 
1771.  After  1802,  Nathan  Dow  built  a  house  near  the 
spring  at  the  east  end  of  James  street.  The  oldest 
house  in  the  village  is  standing  on  the  northeast  corner 
of  James  and  Center  streets,  tho'  it  originally  stood  on 
the  north  side  of  Main  street  near  the  bridge  over 
Ocquionis  creek. 

The  oldest  streets  are  a  part  of  Elm,  Main  street 
west  of  it,  and  Main's  branches,  Herkimer  and  Monti- 
cello.  These  were  opened  as  soon  as  the  town  was 
settled.  The  rest  of  Main  was  opened  as  the  3rd 
Great  Western  Turnpike,  in  1808.  Church  street  was 
laid  out  in  1821,  and  was  called  the  Warren  Road  for 
many  years.  Lake  street  was  opened  after  a  strong 
fight  from  those  whom  it  most  benefited,  in  1842.  It 
was  called  the  Lake  Road  for  a  number  of  years.  The 
Patchen  Road,  from  Lake  street  to  the  Old  Butternut 
Road,  was  given  by  Hubbel  Patchen  in  1844.      After 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  67 

incorporation,  in  1861,  Clark  Burgess  was  made  the 
first  street  commissioner,  and  the  streets  were  then  for 
the  first  time  uniformly  graded.  Mr.  B.  says  that 
nearly  every  owner  had  "  wharfed  out  in  front  of  his 
house  so  that  the  middle  of  the  street  was  the  lowest." 
And  he  further  says  that  he  met  with  great  opposition 
when  he  made  gutters  on  each  side  of  the  streets ;  and 
that  if  he  had  received  even  a  small  share  of  the 
threatened  scaldings  and  shootings  of  that  day,  he 
would  not  now  be  able  to  speak  of  it. 

INCORPORATION. 

The  village  was  incorporated  March  30, 1861,  under 
its  present  name,  which  it  had  borne  since  1842.  Be- 
fore that  time  its  official  titles  had  been  East  Richfield 
and  Canadarago.  An  old  gazetteer  gives  the  name 
Canadarago  Springs.  The  first  village  election  was 
held  in  Stanton  Hall,  now  the  Brunswick,  May  21, 
1861,  and  resulted  in  the  choice  of  the  following 
named  :  James  C.  Armstrong,  president ;  J.  M.  Der- 
thick,  Clark  Huestis,  Robert  Buchanan,  Lot  H.  Hos- 
ford,  trustees ;  H.  C.  Walter,  treasurer;  M.  K.  Hosford, 
police  justice ;  J.  Hyde,  clerk.  The  charter  has  been 
amended  several  times.  A  proposition  to  place  the 
village  under  the  General  Village  Act  was  defeated  in* 
1897.  At  the  time  of  incorporation  there  were  400 
inhabitants  in  the  place,  and  the  size  and  appearance 
of  the  village  may  be  imagined  from  the  following 
showing :    Main   street   had  4   hotels,  2   saloons  with 


58  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

halls,  2  bathing  houses,  7  stores,  4  shops,  26  dwellings, 

3  living  apartments.  Church  street,  2  churches,  2 
shops,  1  dental  office,  18  dwellings.  Lake  street,  one 
photograph  gallery,  1  church,  1  school  house,  1  store, 
1  sliop,  12  dwellings,  1  living  apartment.  James  street, 
1  shop,  10  dwellings.   Center,  1  dwelling.    Gould  ave., 

4  dwellings.  Dow,  1  dwelling.  Elm,  4  dwellings. 
Herkimer,  5  dwellings.     Monticello,  5  dwellings. 

Now  the  streets  contain  these :  Main,  5  hotels,  2 
churches,  4  boarding  houses,  1  photo,  parlor,  2  electric 
light  plants,  22  stores,  1  market,  1  bank,  1  cap  factory, 
1  bath-house,  42  dwellings,  9  living  apartments. 
Church,  2  churches,  34  dwellings.  Lake,  3  hotels,  6 
stores,  1  R.  R.  station  and  coal  yard,  1  knitting  mill, 
1  printing  office,  1  photo,  parlor,  1  market,  1  laundry, 
4  shops,  1  bottling  establishment,  24  dwellings,  2  apart- 
ments. Langdon,  1  woodworking  mill  and  lumber 
yard,  4  dwellings.  Bronner,  2  store  houses,  1  school 
building,  7  dwellings.  Dow,  2  dwellings.  William, 
8  dwellings.  Warren,4  dwellings.  Gould  Ave.,  3  dwell- 
ings. Sylvan,  14  dwellings,  1  shop.  Ann,  2  dwellings. 
Center,  1  printing  office,  1  glove  factory,  2  markets, 
1  store,  8  dwellings,  1  greenhouse.  James,  1  laun- 
dry, 1  calaboose,  1  hose  house,  1  electric  light 
plant,  32  dwellings,  1  shop.  Hotel,  4  dwellings, 
1  shop.  Park,  8  dwellings.  Manley,  1  hotel, 
3  dwellings.  Johnson,  16  houses.  Prospect,  7 
dwellings.  Elm,  21  dwellings.  Walnut,  12  dwell- 
ings.   Herkimer,  9  dwellings.   Monticello,  18  dwellings. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  69 

River,  17  dwellings,  1  shop.  Division,  10  dwellings. 
Canadarago,  1  church,  24  dwellings.  Lake  View  Ave., 
3  dwellings.  Union,  5  dwellings.  High,  3  dwellings. 
South,  2  dwellings. 

THE  FIRST  BRICK  YARD. 

The  first  brick  yard  was  on  the  low  land  south  of 
the  electric  light  plant,  across  Ocquionis  creek,  and  was 
first  used  about  1820.  Later,  about  55  years  ago,  a 
brick  yard  was  established  just  north  of  the  D.L.  &  W. 
switch-yards.  Here  were  burned  the  brick  for  the  first 
brick  houses  in  the  village,  the  old  parts  of  the  Gary 
Cottage  and  the  Tuller  House. 

THE  SULPHUR  SPRING. 

Dr.  Horace  Manley  bought  the  land  surrounding 
the  spring  in  1820,  and  prepared  it  for  use.  The  next 
year  the  first  summer  boarders  came  and  staid  at  the 
Richfield  Hotel,  paying  $1.25  per  week.  To  those  who 
have  spent  the  season  at  the  later  hotels,  comment  on 
price  is  superfluous. 

FIRE  DEPARTMENT. 

During  the  winter  of  1850,  the  American  and  the 
National  were  burned,  and  several  attempts  were  made 
to  burn  the  Richfield  Hotel.  In  the  summer  following 
money  was  raised  by  subscription,  and  Utica's  hand 
fire  engine,  No.  2,  was  purchased.  A  fire  company 
of  about  30  members  was  formed,  of  whom  the  chief 
was  Davis  Brown.     The  members  were  :  Alonzo   Phil- 


60  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

lips,  Wm.  Griffith,  John  and  Geo.  Hi^ginbotham, 
Stephen  Townsend,  Hamilton  Wood,  Geo.  Doolittle, 
Edward  Osborne,  Henry  Balch,  Edward  Caney,  Thos. 
Caney,  R.  G.  Adsitt,  Lot  Hosford,  Moses  Wheeler,  Al- 
mon  Cole,  Justin  Hull,  Wm.  Holt,  James  Whit  well, 
Harvey  Layton,  Thos.  Strickland,  Hamilton  Bailey, 
Edward  Cheeseman,  Philip  and  Levi  Runyan,  Solo- 
mon Piper. 

These,  clad  in  red  jackets  belted  at  the  waist  with  a 
black  girdle,  made  a  brave  show  on  parade.  The  first 
fire  the  company  attended  was  during  the  first  winter 
of  its  existence,  at  the  burning  of  a  hotel  at  Brighton. 
The  arrival  of  the  old  tub  was  too  late  for  service,  but 
the  boys  sucked  dry  a  well  or  two,  and  had  a  good 
time  before  starting  for  home.  The  machine  was 
kept  at  different  places  for  a  number  of  years,  and 
finally  stood  for  a  long  time  on  the  west  side  of  Center 
street,  near  James.  Here  the  village  youngsters  played 
firemen  with  it  for  a  number  of  summers.  At  last 
"Colonel"  Caple  dismantled  it  and  sold  the  brass  and 
copper  fittings.  The  long  copper  nozzle  is  in  possession 
of  Canadarago  Hose  Co.,  by  which  it  is  highly  prized. 
It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  old  machine  was 
not  preserved. 

On  August  27,  1879,  Richfield  Hose  Company  No. 
1,  was  organized,  and  the  following  officers  were 
elected  :  President,  H.  A.  Ward  ;  vice  president,  J.  E. 
Ackerman  ;  recording  secretary,  R.  J.  Lynch  ;  finan- 
cial secretary,  W.  P.  Borland  ;  foreman,  Henry  Green- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  61 

man  ;  assistant  foreman,  F.  B.  Keller ;  treasurer,  W. 
A.  Smith.  The  other  members  were  :  C.  B.  Wilder, 
C.  M.  Goodale,  E.  E.  Young,  C.  C.  Ransom,  0.  A. 
Chamberlin,  E.  B.  Weatherbee,  C.  E.  Goodale,  C.  E. 
Cromley,  Hugh  Freeman,  C.  J.  Hinds,  W.  D.  Locke, 
W.  G.  Buchanan,  Emory  Lock  wood,  W.  D.  Sloan,  G. 
C.  Whipple,  F.  E.  Keeler,  W,  M.  McCredy,  F.  H. 
Keller,  J.  Leary,  A.  D.  Getman^  Wick  McCredy. 

At  a  later  date  Canadarago  Hose  Co.  No.  2,  was  or- 
ganized with  these  officers  and  members :  President, 
M.  Tuller ;  vice  president,  M.  D.  Barrus ;  recording 
secretary,  H.  D.  Luce ;  financial  secretary,  A.  H.  El- 
wood  ;  foreman,  A.  C.  Tennant ;  assistant  foreman, 
Olcott  McCredy ;  treasurer,  H.  C.  Watson.  C.  H. 
Whipple,  F.  B.  Ramsdale,  Jas.  Lent,  Jno.  Moore,  Jr., 
Jas.  Steele,  P.  D.  Fay,  S.  F.  Cole,  F.  B.  Getchell,  Jno. 
Hall,  Wm.  Conklin,  W.  E.  Cole,  W.  H.  Chapman, 
Jno.  Moore,  C.  W.  Borden,  W.  B.  Crain,  G.  H.  Bron- 
ner,  Jno.  Stoner,  B.  A.  Lockwood,  Scott  Lay  ton,  H.  M. 
De  Long,  Geo.  VanHorn,  E.  A.  Hammond,  L.  P.  Sea- 
ton,  D.  G.  Harris,  Thomas  Weldon,  C.  D.  Getchell. 
Both  hose  companies  were  accepted  by  the  board  of 
trustees  Nov.  17,  1879.  No.  2  was  incorporated  March 
17,  1880. 

Richfield  Springs  Hook  and  Ladder  Company  was 
organized  Jan.  10,  1880,  and  incorporated  Jan.  20, 
1880.  The  first  officers  and  members  were :  Presi- 
dent, Jas.  S.  Davenport ;  vice  president,  S.  P.  Barker ; 
secretary,  H.  E.  Flewellen  ;  treasurer,  Ephraim  Shimel; 


€S  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

foreman,  L.  Edwards ;  assistant  foreman,  Alonzo  Get- 
man  ;  steward,  Sylvester  Shimel.  G.  H.  Johnson, 
Damon  De  Long,  Rich'd  Weldon,  A.  Lathrop,  L.  M. 
Doubleday,  Luzerne  Wheeler,  Harry  Williams,  J.  H. 
Sitts.     The  company  was  accepted  Jan.  31,  1880. 

The  organization  of  a  fire  department  was  provided 
for  by  a  resolution  adopted  by  the  village  board  Nov. 
1,  1879,  appointing  the  fourth  Tuesday  in  November 
of  each  year,  between  the  hours  of  7  and  9  p.  m.,  for 
the  election  of  its  officers.  The  first  elected  were : 
Chief  engineer,  Rev.  S.  R.  Ward  ;  first  assistant,  P.  D. 
Fay  ;  second  assistant,  D.  G.  Harris. 

The  first  fire  to  which  the  department  was  called  out 
was  on  the  night  of  April  19,  1880,  at  the  burning  of 
J.  N.  Hinds'  barn.  The  fire  was  subdued.  The  effi- 
ciency of  the  department  has  several  times  since  been 
fully  demonstrated. 

THE  FIRST  SIDEWALK. 

The  first  sidewalk  was  laid  on  the  north  side  of  Main 
street,  from  the  Richfield  Hotel  to  Church  street,  in 
the  spring  of  1825.  James  H.  Gano  proposed  to  a 
party  of  young  men  at  the  hotel,  to  lay  the  walk  men- 
tioned, and  told  them  that  he  would  give  the  material 
if  they  would  help  in  the  work.  He  gave  the  timber, 
which  was  immediately  felled,  logged  and  drawn  to 
the  saw-mill.  John  Runyan  sawed  it  at  once ;  and 
before  night  the  walk  was  completed.  The  next  day 
the  walk  was  continued  up  Church  street  as  far  as  the 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  63 

site  of  the  Universalist  church.     There  were  no  houses 
then  on  the  south  side  of  Main  street. 

RAILROAD,  TELEGRAPH  AND  TELEPHONE. 

The  Delaware,  Lackawanna  and  Western  R.  R.  was 
completed  to  this  village  the  first  of  June,  1870.  The 
terminus  was  then  three  quarters  of  a  mile  west  of  the 
place,  near  the  black  bridge  over  the  Otskonoga.  The 
next  July,  passengers  were  landed  at  Lake  street  sta- 
tion. For  the  furtherance  of  the  railroad  enterprise, 
Richfield  bonded  itself  for  $100,000,  this  village  as- 
suming $35,000.  In  order  to  get  the  terminus  within 
the  village  limits,  the  corporation  was  bonded  for  an 
additional  $30,000.  The  village  was  connected  with 
the  outside  world  by  telegraph  in  January,  1862  ;  and 
by  telephone  in  1883. 

PUBLICATIONS. 

The  Richfield  Springs  Mercury  was  founded  by 
Henry  L.  Brown,  and  the  first  number  was  issued  July 
19,  1867,  from  an  office  that  stood  on  the  east  side  of 
Lake  street,  where  the  Johnson  block  stands.  The 
first  perfect  copy  is  in  possession  of  the  writer,  and  was 
taken  from  the  old  hand  press  by  E.  A.  Hinds.  C. 
Ackerman  bought  the  plant  in  October,  1868.  W.  T. 
Coggeshall  took  control  in  1882,  and  sold  out  to  F.  E. 
Mungor  in  1885.     B.  G.  Seamans  was  taken  as  partner 


64  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

in  1887,  remaining  in  the  firm  till  1895,  when  Mr. 
Mungor  assumed  entire  control  and  ownership. 

In  1886  Frank  G.  Barry  issued  a  summer-time 
weekly  called  the  Richfield  Springs  News,  and  contin- 
ued its  publication  till  the  season  of  1897,  when  it  lost 
its  individuality,  being  merged  with  the  other  News 
series,  in  the  Summer  Resorter. 

The  Richfield  Springs  Daily  was  first  issued  in  1888 
from  the  Mercury  office,  and  has  every  year  since  made 
its  regular  summer  appearance. 

The  Student,  the  High  school  organ,  entered  the 
journalistic  field  in  Feb.,  1888,  and  was,  as  now, 
printed  by  J.  E.  Ackerman.  The  editorial  staff"  was  : 
Fred  Bronner,  H.  H.  Baker,  August  Kinrie,  Annie  M. 
Storer,  Edith  Black,  Flora  Frink. 

In  the  summer  of  1897,  Richfield  Life  was  brought 
out  by  Fred  Grant  Young  and  Purdon  Robinson,  and 
was  published  weekly  during  the  season. 

In  1874  W.  T.  Bailey  published  his  Richfield 
Springs  and  Vicinity,  the  first  local  history  issued. 

WOODSIDE   PARK. 

On  the  12th  of  February,  1880,  William  Smith 
Brown  gave  to  the  village  of  Richfield  Springs  seven 
acres  of  land  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  place,  a  part  of 
which  is  a  natural  grove.  The  trustees  named  in  the 
gift  are  Allen  Bloomfield,  N.  Getman,  and  T.  R.  Proc- 
tor. The  land  was  conveyed  upon  terms,  of  which 
follow  abstracts  : 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  65 

**  No  intoxicating  drinks  shall  be  permitted  to  be 
sold  or  brought  upon  the  grounds. 

The  use  of  bows  and  arrows,  torpedoes,  firecrackers, 
fireworks,  any  manner  of  fire-arms,  air-gun,  or  any 
weapon  or  instrument  which  may  be  dangerous  to  the 
safety  of  visitors,  or  used  to  kill  birds,  shall  be  pro- 
hibited. 

No  picnics,  processions,  religious  or  political  meet- 
ings, or  parades  of  any  societies  shall  be  permitted. 

All  gambling  and  betting  games  shall  be  prohibited  ; 
so  too,  base  ball,  cricket,  and  all  games  in  which  per- 
sonal injury  to  the  participants  or  bystanders  is  liable 
to  occur. 

The  trustees  shall  cause  to  be  posted  in  suitable  and 
conspicuous  places  about  the  park,  plainly  printed  no- 
tices in  English,  French,  and  German,  forbidding  all 
nuisances  of  every  kind ;  all  cutting  and  plucking  of 
trees,  bushes,  shrubs,  plants,  fruit  and  flowers  ;  all  de- 
facing of  seats,  trees,  or  other  objects  in  the  park  ;  and 
such  notices  shall  designate  a  place  where  complaints 
against  offenders  may  be  made." 

ELECTRIC  LIGHTS. 

The  first  use  of  electricity  as  a  lighting  agent  in 
town,  was  at  the  Republican  State  Convention,  Sept. 
19,  1883,  from  a  plant  put  in  by  the  Remingtons,  of 
Ilion.  A  good  many  years  before,  in  1878,  H.  E. 
Walter,  of  this  place,  had  succeeded  in  producing  an 
electric  light,  but  in  a  way  too  crude  for   adoption. 


66  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

The  village  was  first  lighted  by  electricity  June  23, 
1888,  tho'  T.  R.  Proctor  had  illuminated  his  grounds 
and  the  street  in  front  of  them  during  several  preced- 
ing summers. 

SOCIETIES  AND  ORGANIZATIONS, 

with  dates  of  founding,  first  officers,  etc. 

1845.  Sons  of  Temperance,  Canadarago  Division, 
196.     Lawrence  Walter,  W.  P.;  H.  C.  Walter,  R.  S. 

1859.  Richfield  Springs  Lodge,  F.  &  A.  M.,  No. 
482.  James  Hyde,  W.  M.;  Chas.  DeLong,  S.  W.; 
Daniel  Woodbury,  J.  W. 

1864.  Lyceum  Debating  Society.  Juvenile  imita- 
tors were  Adelphians  and  Ciceronians. 

1868.  Richfield  Springs  Chapter,  No.  222,  R.  A. 
M.  S.  R.  Stewart,  H.  P.;  W.  B.  Lidell,  K.;  L.  M. 
Doubleday,  S. 

1869.  Good  Templars,  Lodge  No.  889.  R.  W. 
Ackerman,  Deputy. 

1871.  Canadarago  Base  Ball  Club.  R.  F.  Caney, 
Captain.  This  club  was  succeeded  by  the  Richfields 
and  Compeers.  For  a  number  of  years  past  a  paid 
club  has  been  supported. 

1877.  Browning  Daughters,  a  ladies'  social  and 
literary  society,  at  the  Seminary. 

1881.  Richfield  Springs  Agricultural  Society.  N. 
R.  Baker,  president ;  P.  D.  Fay,  secretary ;  James  Ma- 
son, treasurer. 

1882.  Weldon   Post,  G.   A.   R.,  No.   256.     P.  D. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  67 

Fay,  Com.;  Herman  House,  S.  V.  C;  Elias  Young,  J. 
V.  C. 

1884.  Richfield  Springs  Lodge,  A.  0.  U.  W.,  No. 
308.  M.  D.  Jewell,  P.  M.  W.;  Alfred  Freeman,  M. 
W.;  C.  B.  Wilder,  Rec. 

1885.  Waiontha  Bicycle  Club.  E.  A.  Hinds,  pres. 
and  captain  ;  H.  A.  Ward,  secretary ;  G.  D.  Caney, 
treasurer. 

1889.  Boys'  Club. 

1890.  Canadarago  Council,  Royal  Arcanum,  No. 
1274.  M.  A.  McKee,  Regent;  John  Oyer,  R  R.;  V. 
A.  Cameron,  secretary. 

.     Elias  Young  Camp.,  S.  of  V.,  No.  112.     G. 

W.  Hyde,  captain  ;  William  Kingsley,  1st  Lt.;  Ralph 
Barrus,  2nd  Lt. 

1891.  Richfield  Springs  Gun  Club.  F.  E.  Mungor, 
president ;  A.  Barker,  vice  president. 

1896.  Richfield  Monument  Association  ;  S.  P.  Bar- 
ker, president;  I.  D.  Peckham,  vice  president;  M.  D. 
Jewell,  treasurer ;  A.  M.  Freeman,  clerk. 

BUSINESS  ORGANIZATIONS. 

1882.  First  National  Bank.  N.  Getman,  president; 
M.  A.  McKee,  cashier. 

1889.  Richfield  Springs  Scotch  Cap  Factory. 

1890.  Waiontha  Knitting  Company. 
1893.     Otsego  Glove  Company. 

1897.  Waiontha  Golf  Club,  and  Waiontha  Hunt 

Club. 

.     Richfield  Springs  Racing  Association. 


68  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

LEADING  EVENTS. 

Curfew  and  other  Bells. — After  the  erection  of 
the  Universalist  church,  in  1833,  it  was  the  custom  to 
ring  the  bell  at  9  o'clock  in  the  evening.  This  prac- 
tice was  continued  many  years.  The  bell  was  rung, 
also,  at  6  a.  m.  and  at  noon. 

Waiontha  Observatory. — In  1873  the  citizens  of 
Richfield  Springs  raised  money  by  subscription,  and 
built  an  observatory  upon  the  top  of  Mt.  Waiontha. 
It  was  blown  down  in  a  severe  gale  July  23,  1884. 

The  Old  Indian  Mound  on  the  Hopkinson  farm 
west  of  this  village,  which  members  of  the  Oneida 
tribe  were  said  to  have  visited  annually,  was  opened  to 
a  considerable  depth  in  the  autumn  of  1875,  but  noth- 
ing of  note  was  found. 

The  Waterworks  were  completed  in  1879,  at  an 
original  cost  of  $22,000. 

Oscar  Wilde  lectured  in  the  Spring  House  Aug. 
14,  1882. 

The  Courtney-Lee  boat-race  occurred  Sept.  1,  1882, 
on  Canadarago  Lake,  Courtney  winning. 

Hops  sold  in  the  fall  and  winter  of  1882  for  $1.25  a 
pound.     The  following  summer  the  price  was  25  cents. 

Republican  State  Convention  was  held  here  Sept. 
19,  1883,  in  a  wigwam  built  for  the  purpose  by  W.  B. 
W^ard,  on  the  Spring  House  grounds,  partially  on  the 
site  of  the  Bathing  establishment. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  69 

A  Sculling  Regatta  was  held  in  August,  1884,  on 
Canadarago  Lake,  participated  in  by  Messrs.  Ross, 
Riley,  Plaisted,  Lee,  and  Gaisel.    Ross  was  the  winner. 

The  Sewers  were  laid  down  in  the  summer  of  1885. 

The  first  Heating  Furnace  was  placed  in  1870, 
by  E.  A.  Hinds,  in  his  store  in  Weeks  block. 

The  first  Hot  Water  heating  systems  in  town  were 
put  in  by  G.  T.  Brockway,  in  Monticello,  and  M.  Tal- 
ler &  Son,  in  Richfield  Springs,  in  1898. 

The  Roller  Skating  Mania  struck  this  village  in 
1884,  and  a  rink  was  built  by  Callahan  &  Co.  on  the 
Cary  Cottage  grounds,  next  to  the  Spring  House  park. 
Since  the  craze  died  out,  the  building  has  been  used 
for  summer  theatricals  and  a  cyclery. 

HOTELS. 

The  Richfield  Hotel  is  the  oldest  in  the  village.  The 
main  portion  was  erected  in  1816,  but  a  part  of  the 
wing  was  built  before  1810  by  a  man  named  Graves,  a 
blacksmith  who  had  the  first  shop  in  the  village. 
Nathan  Dow,  one  of  the  immortal  band  that  was  with 
Ethan  Allen  at  Ticonderoga,  built  the  main  part,  and 
to  it  was  annexed  the  older  building.  Robert  Bene- 
dict, a  son-in-law,  was  the  first  proprietor.  Subsequent 
ones  were :  Jesse  Burgess,  Wm.  H.  Lewis,  John  Cul- 
bert,  Moses  Jaques,  Moses  Wheeler,  Chas.  Davy,  Clark 
Huestis,  Sandusky  Keller.  Starr  S.  Keller  is  the  pres- 
ent proprietor.     To  this  house  came  the  first  summer 


70  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

guests,  about  25  in  number,  in  1821.      The  price  per 
week  was  $1.25. 

Page's  Tavern  was  erected  in  1823  by  The- 
odore Page  and  Samuel  Chase,  and  was  origi- 
nally 40  by  30  feet,  and  two  stories  high. 
It  stood  on  the  corner  of  the  3rd  Great  Western 
Turnpike  and  Warren  Road,  now  Main  and  Church 
streets.  Subsequent  proprietors  were :  CM.  Paul, 
Mr.  Cary,  and  Major  Wm.  H.  Lewis.  About  1840 
Joshua  Whitney  became  the  proprietor,  when  its  name 
was  changed  to 

Spring  House.  Mr.  Whitney  made  additions,  as 
did  his  successors,  Messrs.  Van  Horn  &  Backus,  and 
Messrs.  Bryan  &  Ransom,  till  the  house  would  accom- 
modate 450  guests.  Mr.  Ransom  died  in  1872.  The 
financial  panic  of  1873  came  on,  and  the  hotel  busi- 
ness in  the  village  was  next  to  nothing.  The  house 
was  closed  during  the  season  of  1874.  In  1875,  Thos. 
R.  Proctor  purchased  the  house  and  grounds  at  public 
auction,  and  immediately  demonstrated  that  he  was 
one  of  the  kind  of  hotel  men  the  place  needed.  From 
a  complete  failure  he  drew  success,  placing  the  Spring 
House  in  the  front  rank  of  American  oiiting-place 
hotels.  In  1890  the  new  Bathing  establishment  was 
erected,  presenting  to  the  public  all  that  is  the  latest 
and  best  in  hydro-therapy  and  its  accompaniments. 
On  the  morning  of  July  25,  1S97,  the  Spring  House 
was  totally  consumed  by  fire. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  71 

The  American  Hotel  was  built  by  C.  M.  Paul,  in 
1830.  Wm.  P.  Johnson  became  its  proprietor  and 
owner  nine  years  later.  In  1850  the  American  was 
burned.  The  new  hotel  erected  immediately  was 
much  larger,  and  was  a  most  popular  house.  Later 
enlargements  gave  this  hostelry  a  capacity  of  450  peo- 
ple. Other  proprietors  were  George  Horton,  Mess.  Ga- 
ry, TunniclifF  &  Blake,  Mess.  Bloomfield,  Seeber  and 
TunniclifF.    In  1881  Uriah  Welch  named  the  house  the 

New  American,  and  conducted  its  affairs  a  number 
of  years.  The  present  popular  and  energetic  proprie- 
tors are  Mess.  E.  M.  Earle  &  Son,  who  have  rechrist- 
ened  the  hotel,  giving  it  the  name 

Earlington.  Under  their  skillful  control  the  house 
has  taken  a  position  among  the  best  in  the  land. 

Other  Hotels  are  the  Kendallwood,  by  George 
W.  Tunnicliff;  Gary  Gottages,  by  J.  D.  Gary;  Tuller 
House,  by  N.  D.  Jewell ;  Gonkling  Gottage,  by  Mrs.  E. 
Gonkling ;  St.  James,  by  E.  M.  Earle  &  Son ;  The  Elk, 
by  Wm.  Bellinger ;  Tunnicliff  Gottage,  by  Mrs.  J.  F. 
Getman  and  Miss  G.  E.  Tunnicliff;  The  Brunswick, 
by  Fred  Stanton  ;  The  National,  by  S.  P.  Barker ;  Sun- 
nyside,  by  G.  Golwell ;  J.  M.  Derthick's  cottage  ;  Dar- 
row  House,  by  Geo.  W.  Greene ;  Schuyler  House,  by 
Fred  Feldmann ;  The  Delaware,  by  Joseph  Knapp  ; 
Tunnicliff  Lawn,  by  Mrs.  Fanny  Harrington ;  Ed- 
Wards  Gottage,  by  L.  Edwards. 


72  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

EARLY  PRANKS. 

During  the  days  remembered  by  men  now  living, 
there  was  a  number  of  memorable  practical  jokes 
played  in  this  village.  A  few  are  given  to  show  the 
humor  of  the  time.  About  the  year  1854,  Joshua 
Whitney,  owner  of  the  Spring  House,  in  making  some 
changes  about  the  grove,  as  the  park  was  then  called, 
dug  up  a  big  maple  stump,  which  he  dumped  in  a  low 
place  where  now  stands  the  Johnson  block.  The  next 
morning  it  adorned  the  Spring  House  porch.  Mr. 
Whitney  took  it  to  the  swamp  near  the  Lake  House ; 
it  was  his  again  the  next  morning.  It  was  then  taken 
to  Pray  Hill,  and  duly  returned  in  the  night.  Next 
it  was  sent  to  Cat  Town,  10  miles  away,  and  pitched 
over  a  steep  bank  into  a  mill-pond.  A  week  or  two 
afterward  it  was  back  in  its  old  place  on  the  veranda. 
Then  Mr.  Whitney  had  it  cut  to  pieces  and  burned. 

At  another  time,  the  village  butcher  and  meat  ped- 
dler had  stocked  his  wagon  with  meat  for  the  next 
day's  trip,  and  had  laid  him  down  to  pleasant  dreams 
of  the  Emerald  Isle.  Betimes,  he  was  up  and  ready 
to  start ;  but  there  was  no  wagon,  no  meat.  While 
yet  he  slept,  the  jokers  had  come  and  taken  the  wagon 
away,  and  had  left  the  meat  in  generous  chunks  in 
places  throughout  the  village,  where  it  was  thought  it 
would  do  the  most  good.  The  vehicle  was  taken  apart 
and  was  setup  again  on  a  flat-roofed  building  that  stood 
where  Tunnicliff  Cottage  lawn  is.  The  victim  pro- 
cured a  ladder,  and  while  upon  the  roof  making  prep- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  73 

arations  for  getting  his  property  down,  someone  took 
the  ladder  away. 

When  Samuel  Gordon  lived  where  Mrs.  W.  E.  Dar- 
row  lives  now,  the  land  east  of  his  house  was  a  meadow 
owned  by  Daniel  Dow.  Mr.  Dow  had  cut  a  quantity 
of  hay,  and  had  cocked  it  for  the  night.  The  next 
morning  no  hay  was  to  be  seen.  By  following  indica- 
tions, however,  the  owner  found  it  snugly  mowed  away 
in  Mr.  Gordon's  barn.  The  industrious  wags  had  been 
there.  But  Mr.  Dow  did  not  know  it ;  and  he  spoke 
to  Mr.  Gordon  about  the  changed  location  of  his  hay. 
Of»  course,  some  of  the  night  workers  took  pains  to  be 
near  when  the  gentlemen  met ;  and  they  reported  a 
very  spirited  and  interesting  conversation. 

There  were  many  others  ;  but  these  will  suffice  to 
show  that  the  spirit  of  fun  was  in  the  people  of  those 
days. 

SOLDIERS'  AND  SAILORS'  MONUMENT. 

In  1896,  Richfield  raised  money  to  buy  the  plot  of 
ground  known  as  Monument  Park,  in  order  to  have  a 
place  whereon  to  erect  a  monument  to  Richfield's  vol- 
unteers, promised  by  T.  R.  Proctor.  July  5, 1897,  the 
monument  was  dedicated,  presented  and  accepted  with 
pomp,  ceremony  and  circumstance.  The  following 
copy  of  the  day's  program  will  give  an  idea  of  the  ex- 
ercises :  "  Grand  parade.  Marshal,  Dr.  W.  P.  Bor- 
land. Aides,  Maj.  D.  T.  Evarts,  P.  Bradlee  Strong, 
W.  P.  Earle,  John  Wahl,  Louis  Agostini,  C.  M.  Tul- 


74  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

ler,  Clarence  Levin,  J.  Lee  Tailer,  Geo.  Van  Dewater, 
Frank  Croker.  Carriages  containing  speakers,  board 
of  trustees,  clergy  and  representatives  of  the  press. 
Eichfield  Springs  Citizens'  Band.  Third  Separate 
Company,  N.  G.  S.  N.  Y.,  Capt.  Walter  Scott.  Post 
Weldon  and  visiting  veterans  from  Utica,  Waterville, 
West  Winfield,  Van  Hornsville,  Cooperstown  and  Hart- 
wick,  A.  W.  Dennison,  Marshal.  Richfield  Springs 
Fire  Department,  M.  D.  Jewell,  Chief.  Order  of  exer- 
cises at  the  monument :  Presiding  officer.  Mayor  Wm. 
L.  Strong.  Overture.  Prayer,  Rev.  S.  R.  Ward. 
America.  Presentation  of  monument,  Thomas  •R. 
Proctor.  Acceptance  in  behalf  of  town,  Hon.  L.  S. 
Henry.  Remarks,  Col.  Albert  D.  Shaw,  G.  C,  N.  Y. 
S.  G.  A.  R.  Introduction  of  speaker,  Gen.  Daniel 
Butterfield.  Address,  Gen.  James  R.  O'Beirne.  Star 
Spangled  Banner.  Benediction,  Rev.  Geo.  Reynolds. 
Exhibition  drill  at  Woodside  Park,  at  4:30  o'clock. 
Music,  band.  Battalion  parade,  Third  Separate  Com- 
pany. Exhibition  drill.  Hook  and  Ladder  Company. 
Skirmish  drill.  Third  Separate  Company." 

INDIAN  NAMES. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  Indian  names  of  all  the 
streams  and  lakes  in  this  vicinity  have  not  been 
handed  down  to  us.  Happily,  the  name  of  our  own 
beautiful  Canadarago  has  been  preserved,  as  well  as 
those  of  Otsego,  and  the  Waiontha  lakes.  The  name 
of  the  creek  flowing  thro'  this  village  from  the  north, 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  76 

was  known  as  Ocquionis  by  the  aborigines  ;  and  what 
is  commonly  called  Mink,  or  Braman's  creek,  was 
called  by  the  Indians,  Otskonoga.  The  Unadilla  has 
headwaters  in  this  town,  and  has  retained  one  of  its 
old  names.  On  old  maps  and  documents  it  was  vari- 
ously written,  Teyonadelhough,  Tienaderha,  Tunadilla, 
and  Unadilla.  The  Adiga,  another  nearby  stream, 
has  lost  its  real  name  and  is  now  Wharton.  The 
Eockdunga,  a  tributary  to  the  last  named,  has  almost 
lost  its  native  appellation.  Diligent  search  has  not 
brought  to  light  the  original  word  by  which  Oaks 
creek  was  known.  It  is  deplorable  that  the  aboriginal 
names  in  Otsego  county  have  not  been  given  to  the 
village  streets.  Canadarago  street  is  the  only  one  thus 
named.  How  eminently  proper  it  would  seem,  to 
unite  Church  and  Lake  streets  under  the  one  name, 
Canadarago ;  to  give  Main,  (that  abomination  among 
street  names)  the  word,  Otsego ;  to  call  River  street, 
Ocquionis  ;  and  to  bestow  Waiontha,  Unadilla,  Otsko- 
noga, Adiga,  Susquehanna,  Schenevas,  and  the  rest, 
upon  other  streets. 

SUMMER   HOMES. 

Eichfield's  healthfulness,  and  popularity  as  a  sum- 
mering place,  have  induced  a  number  of  city  people 
to  make  it  their  point  of  villegiature.  The  number 
would  be  a  much  larger  one,  had  it  not  been  for  ex- 
cessive, unreasonable  prices  asked  for  lands  at  eligible 
points  near  the  village. 


75  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Applecot  is  the  pleasant  home  of  Mrs.  C.  M.  Roff, 
of  Toledo,  Ohio.  This  unique  cottage  is  situated  on 
East  Main  street,  and  is  the  scene,  in  summer,  of  much 
social  gayety. 

Bella  Vista,  properly  named,  is  the  summer  resi- 
dence of  R.  F.  Westcott  and  family,  of  Orange,  N.  J. 
It  is  one  of  the  most  pretentious  of  the  Richfield  sum- 
mer homes. 

The  Berkeley,  home  of  Messrs.  R.  W.  Tailer,  and  J. 
Lee  Tailer  and  their  families  of  New  York,  is  a  cool 
and  commodious  mansion  on  Main  street.  Here  in  the 
season,  are  made  up  the  many  plans  for  pleasure  in 
the  Waiontha  Hunt  Club. 

Clayton  Lodge,  built  by  the  late  Cyrus  H.  McCor- 
mict,  of  Chicago,  stands  on  a  portion  of  Sunset  Hill, 
and  commands  a  glorious  view  of  the  Canadarago 
valley. 

Hal-Fawn  is  the  season's  home  of  Mrs.  Geo.  Taylor 
and  family,  and  is  about  a  mile  from  the  Springs  in  a 
very  picturesque  spot  on  the  Butternut  Road. 

St.  John  Manor,  the  outing-home  of  W.  Dewees 
Wood,  of  Pittsburg,  stands  on  a  breezy  hill  on  the  old 
Butternut  Road,  about  a  mile  east  of  the  village.  An 
unsurpassed  view  of  the  lake  and  surrounding  hills,  is 
one  of  the  charms  of  the  situation. 

The  Towers,  on  James  street,  is  the  summering  place 
of  Lewis  B.  Caney,  of  New  York.      It   stands   on   a 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  77 

broad  lawn  and  is  an  attractive  and  picturesque  edifice. 

Cottages  to  Rent. — The  following  is  a  list  of  cot- 
tages that  are  almost  every  season  occupied  by  city 
families  who  prefer  the  home  life  to  be  had  therein,  to 
the  whirl  of  life  at  the  hotels  ;  they  are  all  newly  built, 
and  thoroly  up  to  date  in  their  fittings  and  furnish- 
ings :  Cushman's,  Darrow's,  Hannahs',  Hendrix's, 
Hinds',  Ingleside,  Kinne's,  Manley's,  McCredy's, 
Palmer's,  Seeber's,  Standfield  Villa,  St.  John's,  Tarrya- 
while,  Tuttles',  Walters',  Ward's,  Whipple's,  Wilder's. 

Apartments  are  The  Gladstone,  The  Waiontha, 
First  National  Bank  Building. 

CuLLENwooD. — One  of  the  most  interesting  country 
seats  in  this  region  is  Cullenwood,  the  home  of  Hon. 
D.  Jones  Grain  and  family,  at  Gullen.  The  old  hall, 
left  in  its  original  plans,  was  built  in  1805,  and  was 
the  home  of  the  Hon.  Wm.  Gullen  Grain,  distinguished 
in  his  day  as  a  statesman,  and  well  known  for  his  ele- 
gant and  courtly  manners.  Gullenwood  has  been 
famed  for  its  hospitality,  and  has  been  the  scene  of 
many  a  brilliant  function.  Mrs.  Grain  has  recently 
built  an  Episcopal  church  opposite  Gullenwood ;  The 
Good  Shepherd. 

Henderson  Home  is  a  point  of  interest  not  far  from 
Richfield ;  and  a  visit  to  the  quaint  place  erected  in 
1836,  will  well  repay  the  sight-seer. 

Otsego  Observatory,  six  miles  from  Richfield, 
stands  on  the  top  of  Mt.  Otsego,  whence  can  be  had 


78  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

beautiful  and  extensive  views.     The  trip  thither  is  a 
delightful  one. 

SUMMER   THEATER. 

After  the  end  of  the  roller  skating  craze,  the  rink 
was  transformed  into  a  place  for  summer  theatricals. 
Every  season  first-class  companies  appear  here,  and  nu- 
merous entertainments  are  given  by  local  and  visiting 
talent.  The  building  is  also  used  as  a  bicycle  academy 
by  the  energetic  proprietor,  H.  H.  Tuller. 

CITIZENS'  BRASS  BAND. 

This  musical  organization  was  effected  in  1895. 
Previous  brass  bands  were  organized  in  1879,  in  1876, 
and  in  1866.  Many  years  ago  a  band  was  organized 
which  had  eight  clarionets  in  its  make-up. 

PROFESSIONAL  AND  BUSINESS  PEOPLE 

IN  Richfield  Springs. 

Apothecaries. — Borland  &  Bush,  W.  A.  Smith. 
Attorneys.— S.  S.  Edick,  L.  S.  Henry,  J.  De  V.  Reed. 
Bakers.— C.  E.  Goodale,  N.  Weldon. 
Barbers. — Wm.   Hersey,   Geo.    E.    Johnson,    Chris. 
Nadley,  J.  M.  Schaeffer. 

Blacksmiths. — Jos.  Herkimer,  R.  Purcell,  Walter 
Snedeker,  John  Switzer. 

Books  and  Stationery,  W.  H.  Blauvelt. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  79 

Boots  and  Shoes. — Fox  Sisters,  Hinds,  Caney  & 
Kibby,  Kinne  &  Son. 

Bottler,  John  E.  Feldmann. 

Carpenters. — Geo.  Backus,  Chas.  Brooks,  Chas. 
Brunkhurst,  S.  Clemmons,  J.  B.  Cushman,  H.  Davis, 
M.  Drake,  Henry  Freeman,  B.  A.  Lockwood,  Emory 
Lockwood,  Chas.  Scramling,  Lee  Sternberg,  Geo.  Van 
Horn,  John  Walrath,  Richard  Weldon,  Marvin 
Wheeler,  E.  B.  Wilcox,  John  Williams. 

Carting  and  Baggage  Express,  Wm.  Conkling. 

Clothiers  and  Furnishing  Goods,  Wilder  &  Conrad. 

Coal  yard,  J.  D.  Ibbotson. 

Dentists. — S.  J.  Downs,  M.  D.  Jewell. 

Dressmakers. — Misses  Burke,  Comstock,  Nellis ; 
Mesdames  L.  Barker,  Ella  •  Crosby,  G.  E.  Johnson,  J. 
Lawrence. 

Department  Store,  M.  Tuller  &  Son. 

Dry  Goods. — Hinds,  Caney  and  Kibby,  W.  Furmin. 

Express,  Jas.  A.  Storer,  Agt.  U.  S.  Express  Co. 

Florist,  L.  P.  Seaton. 

Furniture,  F.  R.  Martin. 

Groceries. — Jas.  Cole,  Michael  Finukin,  Edwin  Fur- 
min, C.  E.  Goodale,  A.  M.  Westfall. 

Hardware  and  Plumbing. — R.  Buchanan  &  Co.,  L 
D.  Peckham. 

Harness,  Trunks,  etc. — D.  A.  Bierman,  W.  M.  Mc- 
Credy. 

Hops.— T.  F.  Pier  &  Son,  B.  F.  Whipple. 

Ice. — Don  Joslin,  Albert  Schooley. 


80  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

Insurance. — C.  Ackerman,  A.  M.  Freeman,  M.  Tal- 
ler, C.  W.  Tunnicliff. 

Jewelers. — C.  E.  Caney,  Henry  Greenman,  M.  A. 
Walter. 

Liveries. — H.  M.  DeLong,  L.  Edwards  &  Son,  Geo. 
W.  Greene,  F.  H.  Keller,  L.  J.  Luce. 

Masons. — John  Bolton,  Chas.  Bond,  H.  M.  Fort, 
John  Keough,  S.  McHail,  Justin  Osterhout. 

Meat  Markets. — John  Finukin,  TefFt  Bros.,  Vroo 
man  Bros. 

Millinery  and  Fancy  Goods. — Mrs.  L.  Barker,  Mrs. 
F.  Bennett,  Gary  Sisters,  Walter  Furmin,  Storer  Sisters. 

Music  Teachers. — Geo.   Franklin,   Florence  Palmer. 

Painters. — Oscar  Bond,  Jas.  Casler,  Geo.  Clarke, 
Wm.  Cole,  Ralph  Hewes,  Geo.  Johnson,  Jas.  Mullen, 
P.  A.  Rapp,  Erwin  Sauer,  A.  W.  Wheeler,  Henry 
Wolcott,  Charles  Whitham. 

Photographers. — V.  A.  Cameron,  Geo.  Franklin,  H. 
E.  Guiwits. 

Physicians  in  practice. — W.  B.  Grain,  N.  Getman, 
H.  A.  Ward,  H.  G.  Willse. 

Printers. — J.  E.  Ackerman,  F.  E.  Mungor. 

Real  Estate — G.  Ackerman,  A.  M.  Freeman. 

Restaurants — N.  Weldon,  George  A.  Sitts. 

Sign  and  Carriage  Painters — 0.  D.  Getman,  G.  P. 
Smith. 

Surveyors. — E.  W.  Badger,  James  McKee,  H.  H. 
Tuller. 

Tailors.— H.  G.  Beltz,  R.  J.  Bringloe,  C.  B.  Wilder. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  81 

Telegrapher,  Jas.  A.  Storer,  Manager  W.  U.  T.  Co. 

Telephonist,  Blanche  House. 

Undertaker,  D.  W.  Harrington. 

Veterinary  Surgeon,  C.  M.  Goodale. 

Wagon  Makers. — Theodore  El  wood,  H.  J.  Freuden- 
berg. 

Wood  working  Mill,  Lumber  and  Feed,  W.  B. 
Ward. 

MoNTicELLO  Business  People. — Blacksmith,  H.  V. 
Waterman. 

Carpenters. — John  F.  Locke,  Chas.  Sitts. 

Cheese  Manufacturer,  H.  C.  Brockway. 

Dressmakers. — Mrs.  J.  F.  Locke,  Mrs.  Anna  Sitts. 

Hotel,  Orville  Jacobson. 

Merchants. — Geo.  T.  Brockway,  L.  C.  Locke. 

Miller,  0.  W.  Bennett. 

Milliner,  Mrs.  John  Col  well. 

Painters,  G.  W.  and  L.  M.  Firman. 

Physician,  S.  A.  Haggerty. 

Wagonmaker,  John  Colwell. 

ANECDOTES  OF  FITCH  CAPLE. 

When  Moses  Wheeler  kept  the  Richfield  Hotel,  he  had 
an  old  style  hotel  sign-post  planted  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  street.  ''Colonel''  Fitch  Caple  was  an  eccentric 
character  of  that  time,  violent  in  temper,  and  of  des- 
perate disposition  when  in  his  frequent  cups.  Upon 
one  occasion  he  applied  for  a  drink  of  whisky  and  was 


82  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

refused,  upon  the  ground  that  he  already  had  enough. 
The  refusal  angered  Caple,  who  said  if  whisky  was  not 
to  be  sold,  the  proprietor  ought  to  take  down  his  sign. 
A  short  time  afterward  the  ''Colonel"  appeared  at  the 
sign-post  with  an  ax  and  a  gun,  and  proceeded  to  chop 
it  down.  Several  attempts  were  made  to  stop  his 
work,  but  each  time  Caple  took  up  his  gun,  and  swore 
to  kill  any  one  that  came  near ;  and  he  kept  at  work 
till  the  post  was  laid  low. 

At  another  time,  Caple  had  made  his  home  with  a 
family  to  whom  his  constancy  in  attendance  upon 
meals,  and  his  rare  and  partial  settlements  had  become 
burdensome.  One  day  he  brought  in  a  bag  of  flour, 
and  called  for  his  dinner.  The  good  woman  told  him 
he  could  have  no  more  meals,  and  that  she  did  not 
want  the  flour.  "  Oh,  yes,  you  do,"  said  Caple,  and 
seizing  the  bag  he  began  to  whirl  around  and  to  throw 
the  flour  about  the  room  and  all  over  the  poor  woman 
and  her  weeping  half  dozen.  The  condition  of  the 
room  and  the  appearance  of  the  tearful  youngsters 
may  be  easily  imagined. 

ANDRUSTOWN. 

About  fifty  years  before  the  Revolution,  a  settlement 
was  begun  by  several  families  from  the  German  Flatts, 
at  the  site  of  Andrustown.  It  was  at  first  called  Hen- 
dersons', as  it  was  on  the  Dr.  Henderson  grant  of 
26,000  acres ;  later  it  was  corrupted  into  Andreastown 
and   Andrustown.      The   settlers,    as   far   as    can   be 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  83 

learned,  were  Frederick  Bell,  Fred'k  Bell,  Jr.,  Fred- 
erick Hawyer,  John  Osterhoudt,  Jacob  Wollaber,  Fred- 
erick Lepper,  Adam  Stauring,  Paul  Crim,  the  Franks, 
and  one  Bowers.  When  the  Revolutionary  war  began, 
there  was  comfort  and  plenty  on  the  farms  that  had  been 
won  by  much  toil  from  the  forests.  The  people  took 
the  side  of  colonial  liberty  and  were  consequently 
marked  for  destruction  by  the  Royalist  party.  In  1777 
the  settlers  took  refuge  in  Fort  Herkimer.  In  1778 
the  men  put  in  some  crops  on  their  deserted  farms ; 
and  in  July  of  that  year.  Bell,  son  and  grandson,  Stau- 
ring and  son,  Lepper  and  Hawyer,  went  up  to  their 
farms  to  cut  hay.  The  wives  of  Hawyer,  Stauring  and 
Bell,  Jr.,  accompanied  them.  On  the  18th,  a  party  of 
Indians  and  tories  led  by  Brant  suddenly  appeared. 
Both  Bells  and  the  Stauring  boy  were  killed  and  scalped, 
and  the  Bell  boy  was  made  prisoner.  By  orders  from 
Brant  the  women  were  spared.  All  the  buildings  were 
burned  before  the  attacking  party  left.  Benton  says 
that  four  men  were  killed  and  one  died  in  a  burning 
house. 

In  1756  a  band  of  French  and  Indians  made  a  de- 
scent upon  the  German  Flatts  settlements  and  killed 
fifteen,  or  more.    Some  of  these  were  from  Henderson's. 

Again  in  1758,  the  devoted  home-builders  were  driv- 
en from  their  farms  and  several  were  killed,  by  the 
French  and  their  savage  allies.  One  woman  was 
scalped  alive. 


84  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

LITTLE    LAKES,  WARREN  P.  0. 

In  1752  Theobald  Young  and  10  others  obtained  a 
patent  to  14,000  acres  surrounding  the  Waiontha  Lakes. 
Before  the  Revolution,  Young,  Colyer  and  others  had 
settled  south  of  the  lower  lake.  When  the  colonies  re- 
belled, these  men  had  flourishing  farms ;  and  Young 
carried  on  an  extensive  barter  trade.  On  the  way  to 
attack  Andrustown,  Brant  and  his  party  halted  a 
while  at  Young's  Settlement,  as  it  was  called,  to  prepare 
for  the  descent  upon  that  place.  Young  and  Colyer 
were  pronounced  tories  and  gave  aid  and  directions  to 
the  Indian  chief.  After  the  massacre,  the  savages 
and  tories  retreated  via  Young's  Settlement,  thence  to 
Oquago.  As  soon  as  the  Americans  at  Fort  Herkimer 
learned  of  the  affair  at  Andrustown,  a  party  was  sent 
out  in  pursuit  of  the  Indians  and  went  as  far  as  the 
Little  Lakes.  Young  and  Colyer  had  fled,  after  bury- 
ing many  household  valuables,  fearing  the  vengeance 
of  the  Americans.  The  buildings  of  Young  and  Col- 
yer were  plundered  and  burned.  A  few  years  ago, 
Sanford  Tunniclifl',  who  lives  upon  this  historic  spot, 
plowed  up  a  number  of  the  articles  buried  by  the  tories 
before  their  flight. 

After  the  war,  Little  Lakes  became  a  place  of  prom- 
inence, and  the  location  of  a  number  of  important  in- 
dustries. Among  these  was  clock-making.  A  clock 
now  owned  in  Richfield  Springs,  was  made  here  by 
Daniels  and  Carpenter,  in  1795. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  86 

SPRINGFIELD. 

The  first  settlers  were  John  Kelly,  Richard  Fergu- 
son and  James  Young,  who  came  from  the  north  of 
Ireland  in  1762,  and  settled  at  East  Springfield  ;  and 
Gustavus  Klumph  and  Jacob  Tygart,  Germans,  near 
the  head  of  Otsego  Lake.  Before  the  Revolution  there 
was  a  little  settlement  east  of  Mud  Lake.  Brant's  first 
movements  in  Springfield  were  in  January,  1778. 
Some  of  the  whites  escaped  and  some  were  captured, 
but  the  women  and  small  children  were  spared  by 
Brant's  orders.  In  June  of  this  year,  the  women  in  the 
Sprague,  Corey,  and  other  families  who  lived  near 
Mud  Lake,  started  to  go  to  Fort  Plain,  as  they  were 
alarmed  about  an  Indian  attack.  The  men  were  ab- 
sent in  Cherry  Valley.  Taking  the  children,  the  in- 
trepid women  entered  the  forest  and  passed  the  night. 
Early  in  the  morning  they  were  resuming  their  flight, 
when  they  espied  the  dreaded  chieftain,  Brant.  By 
signs  he  motioned  them  back  to  cover,  and  indicated 
the  way  to  continue  their  escape.  A  Spallsburg  fami- 
ly and  Capt.  Thomas  Davy  were  also  ante-Revolution 
residents.  Davy  was  killed  at  Oriskany.  Soon  after 
the  war  Elisha  Dodge,  Col.  Herrick  and  Aaron  Bige- 
low  from  Conn.,  and  Eli  Parsons,  Eliakim  Sheldon, 
and  Isaac  White  from  Mass.,  located  near  the  middle 
of  the  town.  Garret  Staats  built  the  first  sawmill  and 
grist-mill  near  the  lake,  before  the  Revolution.  In 
1778,  Capt.  Henry  Eckler,  living  at  the   Kyle,  had  a 


86  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD, 

visit  from  Brant,  whose  purpose  was  probably  murder. 
As  the  chief  entered  one  door,  Eckler  fled  thro'  anoth- 
er and  sought  cover  in  the  forest.  Brant  called  on  him 
to  stop,  and  fired  on  him  when  he  saw  his  summons 
was  not  regarded.  Eckler  tripped  and  fell  at  the  in- 
stant of  discharge  of  the  gun.     He  eventually  escaped. 

POINTS  OF   HISTORICAL  INTEREST 

Near  Richfield. 

Cherry  Valley,  distant  14  miles,  the  oldest  settled 
place  in  Otsego  county,  and  the  scene  of  the  Indian 
and  Tory  massacre  in  1778  ;  Cooperstown,  14  miles, 
where  Gen.  James  Clinton  built  a  dam  across  the  source 
of  the  Susquehanna  in  the  Indian  campaign  of  1779, 
and  where,  in  after  years,  lived  the  novelist  Cooper, 
upon  the  shores  of  the  Glimmerglass,  amid  the  scenes 
of  the  Deerslayer  and  the  Pioneers ;  Herkimer,  14 
miles,  the  site  of  Fort  Dayton  ;  and  Fort  Herkimer,  14 
miles,  where  was  the  fort  of  the  same  name. 

DRUSE  MURDER. 

In  the  town  of  Warren,  in  December,  1884,  occurred 
the  celebrated  Druse  murder.  Mrs.  Wm.  Druse  shot 
her  husband  while  at  table,  then  killed  him  with  an 
ax,  afterward  cutting  the  body  in  pieces  and  burning 
it  in  a  stove.  It  was  nearly  three  weeks  after  the  event 
before  it  became  known.  The  murderess  was  convicted 
and  hanged  in  Herkimer. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  87 

REVOLUTIONARY   SOLDIERS. 

Among  the  early  settlers  was  a  number  of  men  whom 
the  Spirit  of  '76  had  impelled  to  fight  in  the  battles  for 
American  Independence.  As  nearly  as  possible  this  is 
a  correct  list :  Sisson  Cole,  John  Densmore,  Nathan 
Dow,  Willard  Eddy,  Lemuel  Fitch,  Martin  Griffin,  Na- 
than Harrington,  G.  R.  T.  Hewes,  Alpheus  Loomis, 
Thaddeus  Loomis,  Robert  Martin  and  his  sons  Isaac, 
John,  Joseph,  Nathan,  Robert,  Samuel  and  Stephen, 
Jonathan  Morgan. 

The  War  of  1812  took  from  Richfield  these  :  Ira 
Allen,  Waterman  Ames,  Joseph  Beardsley,  Darius  Ga- 
ry, Samuel  Colwell,  Wm.  Deuel,  Sanford  Deuel,  Aaron 
Dow,   Calvin  Eaton,    Garrison  Filkins,    Oliver  Griffin, 

Hewes,    Ivory  Holland,    Jeremiah  Meacham, 

Joseph  Norton. 

Mexican  War,  Nathan  Harrington,  3rd. 

War  with  Spain,  1898,  Edward  Brady,  Thomas  M. 
Floyd  Palmer,  Frank  Palmer,  Elmer  Watson. 

George  Robert  Twelve  Hewes,  one  of  the  sons  of  a 
Welshman,  was  born  in  Boston,  Mass.,  Sept.  5,  1731. 
He  was  one  of  that  body  of  men,  who  disguised  as  In- 
dians on  the  night  of  the  16th  of  December,  1773, 
boarded  the  Dartmouth  and  two  other  British  ships 
lying  at  Griffin's  wharf,  in  Boston,  and  threw  342 
chests  of  tea  into  the  sea. 

When  Boston  was  invested  by  the  British,  he  escaped 


88  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

and  took  service  upon  a  Yankee  privateer.  Later,  he 
joined  the  army  and  was  stationed  at  West  Point  and 
Fishkill.  The  only  military  engagements  he  was  in, 
were  those  skirmishes  that  took  place  upon  the  neutral 
ground  of  Westchester.  After  muster-out  he  became 
mate  of  a  vessel  in  the  West  India  trade.  Early  in 
the  19th  century  he  removed  to  the  region  of  Richfield 
Springs,  where  he  followed  farming  and  shoemaking. 
In  1825  he  was  taken  to  Boston  to  be  an  honored  guest 
at  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  Bunker  Hill  mon- 
ument, June  17.  He  was  then  94  years  old.  Upon 
his  return  he  was  given  a  purse  of  $500.  This,  with  a 
pension,  kept  his  declining  years  comfortable.  His  death 
occurred  Nov.  5,  1840,  in  the  town  of  Warren,  and  he 
was  interred  in  the  Church  street  burying  ground. 
On  the  day  previous  to  Memorial  Day,  1896,  his  bones 
were  exhumed  in  perfect  condition.  On  Memorial  Day 
they  were  re-interred  in  the  Grand  Army  lot  in  Lake 
View  Cemetery,  by  Commander  T.  I.  Jaques  and  the 
officers  and  members  of  Post  Weldon.  The  old  head- 
stone was  set  up  over  the  remains.  The  inscription 
upon  it  reads  :  ''  George  R.  T.  Hewes,  one  who  helped 
drown  the  tea,  in  Boston,  1770  [3],  died  Nov.  5,  1840, 
aged  109  years  and  2  months."  An  oil  painting  of 
the  old  patriot  hangs  in  Faneuil  Hall. 

VARIOUS  SPRINGS. 

Besides  the  Manley  Spring,   on   the   Spring   House 
grounds,  there  are  several  other  mineral  springs  in  this 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  89 

vicinity,  all  more  or  less  impregnated  with  sulphur. 
In  the  swamp  at  the  head  of  the  lake,  is  an  island,  in 
the  middle  of  which  is  an  immense  sulphur  spring. 
Its  location  is  marked  by  two  towering  pines.  There 
are  others  at  the  following  named  places  :  near  Oak 
Ridge,  on  the  west  side  of  the  lake  ;  near  the  railroad 
bridge  on  the  west  bank  of  Ocquionis  creek ;  at  several 
places  on  the  "Weatherbee  estate ;  on  the  Earlington 
grounds  ;  two  on  the  Gary  Cottage  property  ;  by  the 
brook  south  of  th«  Kendall  wood  ;  on  Dr.  Grain's  pro- 
perty on  Ghurch  street.  Two  or  three  rods  east  of  the 
Manley  Spring,  at  the  head  of  the  Bowling  Green,  is 
buried  a  spring,  whose  waters  contain  an  acid  that  crys- 
tallized upon  twigs,  etc.,  before  its  obliteration. 

PETRIFIED  BODIES. 

In  the  autumn  of  1895,  several  bodies  were  exhumed 
from  a  private  burial  plot  on  the  west  side  of  the  lake, 
that  were  found  to  be  thoro'ly  petrified. 

They  were  of  chalky  whiteness,  and  were  very 
heavy,  requiring  the  strength  of  several  men  to  lift 
them  to  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

FATALITIES. 

Between  1790  and  1793,  a  man  was  killed  near 
Monticello,  by  a  falling  tree. 

In  the  autumn  of  1806,  two  Aiken  children  and  a 
boy  named  Wood,  were  burned  to  death  at  the  burn- 
ing of  a  log  house,  near  Monticello. 


90  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

In  1808,  while  at  work  opening  the  3rd  Great  West- 
ern Turnpike,  a  man  named  House  was  killed  by  the 
caving  of  a  bank,  near  Guy  Kinne's  house  on  Main 
street. 

Early  in  this  century,  Indian  John  was  drowned  in 
Canadarago  Lake. 

Some  time  during  the  summer  .of  1810,  Jonathan 
Copp,  a  young  man,  was  drowned  in  the  Monticello 
millpond. 

On  October  10th  of  the  same  year,  Nathan  Hawks 
was  killed  at  the  construction  of  a  bridge  over  the 
Hyder,  on  the  lake  road. 

In  June,  1814,  several  girls  were  riding  upon  a  load 
of  lumber,  down  the  east  side  of  Pray  Hill.  The  team 
became  frightened  at  the  slipping  of  some  boards  and 
ran  away.  All  were  thrown  off;  and  Myra  Hodge 
and  Eliza  Whitney  were  killed. 

About  the  year  1832,  in  the  spring,  Thomas  Lay  ton 
was  drowned  in  a  small  brook,  a  few  rods  south  of 
Brighton. 

In  the  summer  of  1834,  James  Moyer  was  drowned 
while  bathing  in  the  pond,  afterward  called  Lake  Clem- 
ent, at  Richfield  Springs. 

On  the  13th  of  June,  1835,  Samuel  Palmer,  a  lad  ot 
12  years,  was  drowned  in  a  brook  at  Brighton. 

About  the  year  1845,  Harriet  Norton,  a  school-girl 
on  the  old  road,  was  severely  hurt  during  a  punish- 
ment inflicted  by  her  teacher,  Spencer  Hopkins,  and 
died  a  few  days  afterward.      So  much  was  said  about 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  91 

the  affair,  and  Hopkins  was  told  so  many  times  that 
he  "ought  to  be  taken  up,"  that  he  left  the  school  and 
the  neighborhood. 

April  14,  1848,  John  Brooks  was  killed  by  a  falling 
beam,  at  a  barn-raising  on  the  Wilmarth  farm,  south  of 
Monticello. 

April  9,  1854,  Russell  Chamberlin  broke  thro'  the 
ice  between  the  island  and  the  eastern  shore,  and  was 
drowned. 

In  January,  1855,  Albert  Butler  froze  to  death  be- 
side the  road,  near  the  Black  Bridge  over  Otskonoga 
creek. 

April  16,  1855,  Ray  Vaughn,  a  boy,  was  drowned  in 
Hyder  creek,  in  Monticello. 

Near  the  middle  of  Nov.,  1857,  Moses  Wheeler,  of 
Richfield  Springs,  was  kicked  by  a  horse,  and  died  a 
few  days  afterward. 

November  23,  1857,  Albert  Culbert,  a  lad,  was 
drowned  while  skating,  in  Lake  Clement. 

June  12,  1859,  Joseph  Layton  was  drowned  in 
the  trout-pond  on  Egypt  farm,  near  Richfield  Springs. 

In  the  spring  of  1859,  Patrick  McNamara  killed  his 
wife  with  a  club.  The  tragedy  occurred  in  a  house, 
now  gone,  that  stood  on  the  Butternut  Road,  not  far 
from  the  Lake  House.  The  man  was  sentenced  to  life 
imprisonment  and  was  pardoned  after  many  years. 

On  the  8th  of  June,  1861,  Fred  Wheeler,  a  child,  was 
drowned  in  the  Ocquionis,  near  the  Scotch  Cap  factory. 

March  5,  1866,  Mrs.  William  Brown  was  burned  to 


92  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

death  at  her  home  in  the  northern  part  of  the  town. 

Earl;y  in  September,  1869,  James  Roy,  a  young  man, 
a  guest  at  one  of  the  hotels,  was  drowned  while  bath- 
ing near  the  Sunken  Island. 

June  20,  1872,  Willis  Frazier  was  drowned  while 
bathing  in  Lake  Clement. 

October  10,  1874,  Eck  Freeman  was  drowned  at 
night,  in  Lake  Clement. 

On  June  10,  1881,  Hon.  A.  R.  Elwood  was  killed 
by  a  fall  into  a  basement,  at  the  New  American. 

May  7,  1882,  Katie  Kleinschmidt,  a  child,  was 
drowned  in  Lake  Clement. 

During  the  summer  of  the  same  year,  a  man  named 
Murphy,  fell  several  stories  at  the  New  American  and 
was  killed. 

On  October  26,  1882,  Lewds  H.  Flint  was  instantly 
killed,  while  duck  hunting  on  Canadarago  Lake,  by  the 
accidental  discharge  of  a  gun  in  the  hands  of  Alfred 
Freeman. 

Some  time  during  the  night  of  January  18,  1883, 
Harvey  Layton  killed  his  wife,  and  his  mother-in-law, 
Mrs.  Young,  with  a  hatchet,  at  his  home  on  Walnut 
street.     Later,  he  hanged  himself. 

May  25,  1885,  Patrick  Heeney  was  killed  by  the 
caving  of  a  ditch  in  Lake  street. 

August  9,  1886,  James  Coppinger,  a  porter  at  the 
New  American,  drank  by  mistake,  a  quantity  of  aqua 
ammonia  and  died  the  next  day  in  a  Utica  Hospital. 

October  22,  1890,  W.  F.   Ginbey,  a  trackhand,  was 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  9S 

killed  by  the  cars  while  riding  a  track  bicycle,  near  the 
Honestville  crossing. 

July  18,  1891,  James  Taylor,  colored,  was  killed  in 
an  elevator  accident  at  the  Earlington. 

February  27,  1892,  James  Bowmaker,  a  child,  was 
drowned  in  the  Ocquionis,  near  the  rail-road  bridge. 

October  4,  1895,  James  Morgan  was  killed  by  the 
cars  near  the  Gano  crossing. 

September  29,  1896,  Edward  Ennis  was  killed  by 
the  cars  near  the  Switzer  crossing. 

January  20,  1897,  W.  J.  Cole  was  killed  in  a  log- 
ging accident,  in  the  western  part  of  the  town. 

The  Hall  and  Layton  shooting.  On  the  evening 
of  Aug.  17,  1882,  John  Hall  and  Scott  Layton,  police- 
men, were  dangerously  wounded  by  pistol-shots  from  a 
gang  of  burglars  that  they  were  about  to  arrest,  at  the 
corner  of  Main  and  Center  streets. 

CHURCH  SOCIETIES. 

St.  Luke's  Protestant  Episcopal,  was  organized 
at  Monticello,  May  20, 1799,  and  was  incorporated  April 
28, 1801.  Rev.  Daniel  Nash  was  the  rector.  It  has 
been  asserted  that  he  was  the  original  of  Cooper's  Par- 
son Grant. 

The  first  church  edifice  was  erected  in  1801,  near 
Monticello.  In  1832  it  was  taken  down  and  a  portion 
of  the  timbers  was  used  when  the  present  St.  Luke's  was 
built  in  Monticello,  the  same  year. 


94  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

The  First  Congregational  Church  was  organized 
at  the  hotel  of  Jacob  Brewster  in  Monticello,  February 
2, 1803,  and  was  incorporated  June  11, 1813.  The  first 
house  of  worship  was  finished  in  1 804.  An  old  town 
record  states  that  on  March  5,  1805,  it  was  "voted  that 
the  next  Annual  Town  Meeting  be  held  at  the  Meet- 
ing House,"  and  such  meetings  were  held  there  many 
years.  This  building  stood  near  the  cemetery  in  the 
western  part  of  Monticello,  and  was  burned  in  1822. 
A  second  church  edifice  was  erected  on  the  Warren 
Eoad,  now  Church  street,  in  1825.  In  1868,  the  title 
of  the  society  was  changed,  and  became 

The  First  Presbyterian  society.  In  1876,  the 
structure  was  torn  down  and  was  replaced  by  the  hand- 
some church  now  standing.  The  dedication  occurred 
July  26,  1877.  In  1896,  Mrs.  Emmons  Blaine,  born 
McCormick,  gave  to  the  society  an  elegant  and  costly 
organ  valued  at  $20,000,  as  a  memorial  to  her  husband. 
The  formal  presentation  and  acceptance  took  place  Sun- 
day, October  29,  1896.  Following  is  the  pastoral  rec- 
ord :  Charles  Wadsworth,  1823 ;  John  Shearer,  1827 ; 
Daniel  Van  Valkenburg,  1830  ;  Wm.  C.  Boyce,  1844 ; 
Timothy  B.  Jervis,  1847  ;  Henry  Boynton,  1852  ;  Mat- 
thew L.  R.  P.  Hill,  1853 ;  Chas.  Wadsworth,  1854 ; 
Andrew  Parsons,  1859  ;  Frank  H.  Seeley,  1866 ;  David 
M.  Rankin,  1882  ;  Samuel  Van  V.  Holmes,  1887  ;  Geo. 
Reynolds,  1892  ;  Edmund  G.  Rawson,  1898.  Organi- 
zations of  the  society :    The  Ladies'  Society,  Mission- 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  95 

ary  Society,  Y.  P.  S.  C.  E.,  Girls'  Friendly  Society,  J. 
E.  Society. 

The  First  Baptist  Church  was  built  at  Monticello 
in  1824,  and  is  still  standing.  The  society  existed  sev- 
eral years  before  the  erection  of  the  house  of  worship. 

The  First  Universalist  Church  was  organized  at 
the  American  Hotel  in  East  Richfield,  kept  by  Cor- 
nelius M.  Paul,  May  23,  1833.  The  church  edifice 
was  built  that  year.  At  the  services  of  dedication,  G. 
R.  T.  Hewes,  of  whom,  more  in  another  place,  marched 
up  the  aisle  and  presented  the  society  a  new  pulpit 
Bible.  Mr.  Hewes  at  that  time  was  103  years  old.  In 
1872  the  New  York  State  Convention  of  Universalists 
was  held  in  the  newly  enlarged  and  modernized  edifice. 
Following  is  the  pastoral  list ;  Orrin  Roberts,  1834  ; 
L.  C.  Brown,  1835  ;  T.  J.  Smith,  1836 ;  J.  S.  Kibby, 
James  Belden,  Robert  Queal,  Phineas  Hathaway,  J.  H. 
Tuttle,  D.  C.  Tomlinson,  W.  E.  Manley,  L.  C.  Brown, 
1837-1861 ;  S.  R.  Ward,  1862  ;  T.  D.  Cook,  1873 ;  S. 
R.  Ward,  1877.  Organizations:  The  Ladies'  Society, 
Girls'  Circle,  Y.  P.  C.  U. 

The  Second  Universalist  Church  was  built  in 
Monticello  and  dedicated  Oct.  15,  1880.  Rev.  S.  R. 
Ward  was  the  first  pastor. 

The  Methodist  Episcopal  society  of  Brighton  was 
organized  prior  to  1844,  during  which  year  the  present 
church  edifice  was  erected.  The  early  pastors  were  : 
Isaac  Foster,  Elward  Breckenridge,  T.  B.  Rockwell, 
Robert  Fox,  D.  Potter,  B.  B.  Carruth,   Mr.  Meris  and 


96  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD, 

Mr.  Griffin.  Since  the  organization  of  the  M.  E.  church 
in  Richfield  Springs,  the  clergymen  assigned  to  that 
place  have  been  the  pastors  of  the  Brighton  church. 

St.  John's  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  was  or- 
ganized October  1,  1849,  at  the  residence  of  George  B. 
Gary,  Richfield  Springs.  The  first  church  edifice  was 
built  on  the  west  side  of  Lake  street  opposite  the  Rec- 
tory, on  land  given  by  Augustus  H.  Ward,  and  was 
dedicated  August  11,  1853.  In  1879,  this  structure 
was  torn  down  and  a  new  one  begun  at  the  corner  of 
Main  and  Elm  streets,  on  a  site  donated  by  Edmund  < 
A.  Ward.  This  was  dedicated  the  following  year.  A 
list  of  settled  rectors  follows  :  Owen  P.  Thackara,  1851; 
James  W.  Capen,  1855 ;  Robert  T.  Pearson,  1856 ;  Jas. 
W.  Capen,  1860  ;  Charles  L.  Sykes,  1862  ;  Joshua  R. 
Peirce,  1870 ;  Edward  M.  Pecke,  1872 ;  Charles  C. 
Fiske,  1878  ;  Robert  Granger,  1881 ;  George  B.  Rich- 
ards, 1893  ;  Scott  M.  Cooke,  1897.  Organizations  :  St. 
John's  Guild;  Chancel  Chapter,  St.  John's  Guild ;  Rec- 
tor's Aid  Society. 

St.  Joseph's  Roman  Catholic  Church. — The  first 
Roman  Catholic  services  were  conducted  by  Rev.  Jon- 
athan Furlong,  in  1852  or  3.  Mass  was  said  by  him 
at  different  times  in  private  houses,  and  in  the  old 
Lake  street  school  house.  From  that  date  till  1869, 
occasional  services  were  held  by  priests  located  in 
Cooperstown  :  Rev.  Fathers  Fitzpatrick,  Carroll,  Clark, 
Murphy,  and  Brennan.     During  the  pastorates  of  Rev. 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  97 

Fathers  Devitt,  1869-78,  and  Hughes  1878-82,  the 
society  was  an  out-mission  of  Our  Lady  of  the  Lake, 
Cooperstown.  In  1882  it  was  annexed  to  St.  Joseph's 
parish.  West  Winfield.  It  was  created  a  separate  par- 
ish in  1889,  with  Rev.  M.  C.  Gavin,  rector.  Rev. 
John  V.  Quinn  was  appointed  rector  in  1897.  The 
church  edifice  was  completed  in  1870.  Organizations: 
League  of  the  Sacred  Heart,  Young  Ladies'  Sodality, 
Ladies'  Altar  Society. 

The  First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of 
Richfield  Springs. — In  the  spring  of  1871,  Rev. 
Olin  C.  Wightman  was  appointed  to  Warren 
charge,  and  fixed  his  residence  in  Richfield 
Springs.  He  began  a  series  of  meetings  in  Union 
Hall,  May  21,  1871.  Eight  days  later  the  society  was 
incorporated.  The  church  building  was  dedicated 
January  6,  1874.  The  list  of  ministers  to  this  charge 
follows  :  0.  C.  Wightman,  1871 ;  A.  G.  Markham, 
1873  ;  J.  V.  Ferguson,  1876  ;  M.  G.  Wadsworth,  1879; 
C.  E.  Babcock,  1881 ;  0.  C.  Cole,  1884 ;  J.  L.  Hum- 
phrey, 1885 ;  Charles  Sheard,  1888  ;  W.  R.  Helms, 
1889  ;  A.  C.  Loucks,  1894 ;  A.  J.  Felshaw,  1896.  Or- 
ganizations :  Ladies'  Aid  Society,  Epworth  League, 
Helping  Hand  Junior  League,  Young  Ladies'  Sewing 
Circle. 

A.  M.  E.  Church. — The  society  was  organized  June 
6,  1897,  and  it  is  expected  that  a  house  of  worship 
will  be  erected  soon.  The  pastor  is  Rev.  J.  D.  Jack- 
son. Organizations  :  Willing  Workers,  Juvenile  So- 
ciety. 


Points  of  Interest  Near  Richfield  Springs. 


THE  CANADARAGO  BELT. 

The  Canadarago  Belt,  or  Drive,  is  the  most  justly- 
celebrated  of  the  many  pleasant  turns  in  this  region, 
and  compares  favorably  with  any  drive  in  this  State. 
Its  length  is  twelve  miles  and  130  rods.  Over  this 
distance,  many  exciting  bicycle  road-races  of  25  and 
50  miles  have  been  run.  Along  its  course  around  the 
lake,  at  the  foot  of  high  hills,  or  thro'  well-tilled 
savannahs,  a  most  perfect  view  of  Canadarago,  "  Squaw 
of  the  Sun,"  is  to  be  had.  The  road  winds  in  and  out 
thro'  dense  pine  forests  and  groves  of  deciduous  trees, 
and  across  sunny,  breeze-swept  meads ;  now,  down  to 
the  water's  edge,  where  the  silver  waves  and  singing 
sands  unite  in  tinkling  song ;  then,  up  some  lofty 
mount,  affording  a  full  view  of  the  lake  from  head  to 
foot,  with  its  embosoming  hills  on  every  side.  Here, 
in  summer,  the  wealth,  beauty,  and  fashion  of  the  na- 
tion, daily  throng  to  witness  and  enjoy  the  sparkling 
beauties  of  the  lake,  and  the  glorious  splendors  of  the 
landscape,  grandly  displayed  in  miles  of  charm.  Near 
the  eastern  shore,  like  an  emerald  in  a  setting  of  golden 
sun-glint,  lies  De-o-won-go,  the  beautiful  island,  not  far 
away  from  the  spot  where  more  than  eighty  years  ago, 
her  unfortunate  sister  was  swept  out  of  existence.     A 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  99 

most  charming  view   of  this  islet  gem  is  obtainable 
from  the  top  of  Perkins  Hill. 

NINE  HILL. 

On  the  west  side  of  Canadarago  Lake,  flanking  the 
road,  rises  grandly  from  the  murmuring  waves  of  the 
pebbly  beach  to  its  oak-crowned  pinnacle,  the  massive 
bulk  of  Nine  Hill.  Many  years  ago  its  name  came  from 
the  fact  that  nine  farms  were  embraced,  in  part,  upon 
its  broad  bosom.  From  its  lofty  summit  can  be  ob- 
tained a  magnificent  view  of  the  lake  and  the  high 
range  of  hills  to  the  southward.  From  its  base  flows 
a  spring  of  ice-cold  water  of  crystalline  clearness,  that 
purls  constantly  into  one  of  T.  R.  Proctor's  memorial 
drinking  fountains,  that  proclaims  to  passers,  in  ada- 
mantine letters,  that  The  Merciful  Man  is  Merciful  to 
his  Beast. 

PRAY  HILL. 

More  than  a  hundred  years  ago  Richard  and  William 
Pray,  "  down-east  Yankees,"  settled  upon  the  land  em- 
bracing this  hight,  situated  about  three  miles  west  of 
Richfield  Springs,  near  Brighton.  From  this  eminence, 
where  the  winds  blow  on  the  stillest  summer  day,  a 
broad  scene  of  terrene  beauty  stretches  to  the  eastward 
over  several  counties.  Down  its  eastern  slope,  many 
years  ago,  occurred  a  terrible  runaway  accident  that 
resulted  in  the  death  of  two  little  girls,  and  the  serious 
wounding  of  others. 


100  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

SUNSET  HILL. 

A  small  eminence  at  the  northern  edge  of  the  vil- 
lage of  Richfield  Springs,  is  so  named  from  the  fine 
view  of  summer  sunsets  to  be  had  there,  as  the  broad 
shield  of  the  orb  of  day  sinks  behind  the  battlements 
of  Nine  and  Pray  Hills.  From  this  sightly  elevation 
the  village  of  Richfield  Springs  can  be  seen  stretching 
away  thro'  the  valley  of  the  Ocquionis.  Beyond,  Cana- 
darago  reflects  the  glinting  sunlight,  and  mirrors  the 
white,  lazily  floating  clouds.  A  hundred  years  ago, 
this  mount  was  Abbott's  Hill,  as  it  was  the  site  of  the 
home  of  Aaron  Abbott.  Later,  it  was  Butternut  Hill, 
from  the  big  butternut  trees  that  stood,  within  the 
memory  of  the  small  boys  of  thirty  years  ago,  upon  its 
roadside  summit.  Clayton  Lodge,  the  McCormick 
summer  home,  perches  upon  its  highest  point,  com- 
manding an  enchanting  view  of  village,  lake  and  hills. 
Its  eastern  slopes  are  a  part  of  the  links  of  the  Waion- 
tha  Golf  Club. 

GUNSET  HILL. 

This  high  hill  is  on  the  old  Indian  trail  leading 
from  the  Mohawk  castles  on  the  river  of  that  name,  to 
the  lands  of  the  other  Iroquois  nations,  that  Generals 
Sullivan  and  Clinton  laid  waste  in  1799.  It  is  about 
a  mile  west  of  the  sulphur  village,  in  full  view  of  it. 
Here,  stretching  afar  over  hill  and  dale,  one  can  behold 
a  scene  of  marvelous  beauty  and  grandeur.      The  hill 


ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD.  101 

took  its  name  from  the  fact  that  upon  it  the  early  set- 
tlers used  to  set  guns  for  bears,  which  were  very  nu- 
merous about  it  in  the  old  days. 

WAIONTHA  MOUNTAIN. 

About  two  miles  east  of  Eichfield  Springs  is  Waion- 
tha  Mountain,  the  highest  peak  near  the  village.  From 
an  observatory  that  once  stood  upon  its  summit,  broad 
views  of  Otsego,  Schoharie,  Greene,  Chenango,  Madi- 
son, Oneida,  Herkimer,  Hamilton,  Montgomery,  and 
Fulton  counties,  were  easily  obtainable ;  and  glimpses 
of  Otsego,  the  Waionthas,  Mud,  Canadarago  and  Al- 
len's lakes  could  be  seen  nestling  among  the  emerald 
hills.  The  name  was  given  on  account  of  its  proxim- 
ity to  the  two  small  lakes  called  in  the  Oneida  dialect, 
Wa-i-on-tha,  meaning  By  the  Big  Hill. 

DE-0-WON-GO. 

This  beautiful  little  island  in  Canadarago  Lake,  con- 
tains about  nine  acres  of  high,  dry  ground,  covered 
with  a  heavy  growth  of  native  trees  and  shrubs.  It  is 
a  favorite  point  for  excursions,  and  picnic  parties. 
Daniel  Wormer  purchased  it  from  the  State  in  1850, 
and  since  1868  it  has  been  the  property  of  Edmund 
A.  Ward,  of  Richfield  Springs.  De-o-won-go,  in  the 
tongue  of  the  Oneidas,  signifies  Place  of  Hearing,  a 
phrase  applied,  because  a  notable  echo  was  there  before 
the  forests  were  destroyed. 


102  ANNALS  OF  RICHFIELD. 

PANTHER  MOUNTAIN. 

This  eminence  is  situated  on  the  southeastern  shore 
of  Canadarago  Lake,  near  Schuyler  Lake  village,  and 
was  said  to  be  a  favorite  hunting  ground  for  the 
Panther,  an  Indian  that  formerly  lived  in  this  region. 
It  stands  within  the  limits  of  The  Twelve  Thousand. 
Here,  at  an  early  day,  bears,  deer,  panthers,  and  other 
animals  were  numerous. 

MOHEGAN  HILL. 

This  is  a  high  hill  nearly  s^uth  of  Waiontha,  that 
rises  boldly  from  the  western  shores  of  Allen's  Lake. 
Its  top  affords  a  noble  prospect.  The  name  is  an  arbi- 
trary one. 


.^.f,t^,tJM; 


M294174 


